


Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Connections

by DarknessStorm



Category: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (Video Game)
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, F/F, F/M, No Pyra, Only Mythra and Pneuma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:26:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 37,251
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27345793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarknessStorm/pseuds/DarknessStorm
Summary: Alrest, a vast world of a sea of clouds with people living on the backs of Titans. But the Titans are starting to die out, reducing the amount of land in the Cloud Sea. However, Xander Origo is more focused on his next paycheck than that. That all changes when he and his group locate a sunken vessel containing the Aegis. Now he must decide whether he should help Mythra reach Elysium, or let Alrest continue its decline.This is a reboot/rewrite of my Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Bonds story. I'm not really proud of Bonds and think that the writing isn't that great. There were quite a few inconsistencies or plot holes because I completely changed how the story was going to go a third of the way through and couldn't find a way to adjust. Some of the characters from it will either get cut or renamed (one example being Frank being renamed Xander and getting a different personality). There will also be some new characters to replace them and some characters will get new roles. Just a heads up, this story will follow the Xenoblade 2 story, but with my own spin and hopefully some new additions.Also there is no Pyra in this story. It's just Mythra and the ascended form. Sorry Pyra fans.
Relationships: Brighid/Original Female Character, Kos-Mos/Original Male Character, Mythra/Original Male Character, Nia (Xenoblade Chronicles 2)/Original Male Character(s)
Kudos: 8





	1. The Beginning

A young man was dashing through a forest on the Gormotti Titan. The trees were large and lush, blocking out most of the Sun's rays. He wore a blue twin-tailed overcoat, silver gloves, blue pants, and brown leather boots. He had silver hair and gold eyes and looked to be around twenty years old. In his right hand was a white futuristic longsword with a blue energy blade and a blue crystal in the hilt. His name…was Xander Origo.

Xander looked over his shoulder and saw the pack of Volffs still chasing him.

"You guys sure are persistent," he commented as he kept his momentum.

The beasts were closing in on him. It won't be long before they catch up and kill him. But he wasn't going to let that happen. He refused to let himself die like this, in the middle of nowhere. He's almost there. Just a little further.

Xander soon found himself in a clearing, however, his path was blocked by a cliffside. He could try scaling the cliff to get away, either by climbing or by using his grapple (which was concealed under his left sleeve by his wrist), but he didn't make a move towards it. Instead he turned around to face the horde of Volffs. He gripped his sword with both hands and got into a battle stance.

The first beast closed in and pounced on the swordsman, ready to bite into his neck. Right before the Volff could even come into contact, Xander quickly swung his upward, cleaving the beast in two. Two more Volffs decided to flank him and attack him from the sides, only for the swordsman to spin and strike them both, killing them instantly.

Three of the beasts were slain, but there were still seventeen Volffs left. Even this would be a challenge for him to handle alone as he watched the remaining beasts charged into the clearing and surround him, their eyes full of bloodlust. Two Volffs eagerly ran at Xander from behind while several prepared to come from the other directions.

Right before the Volffs managed to reach their target, a white figure suddenly landed directly behind the swordsman and stopped their advance with a blue hexagonal barrier made out of ether energy produced from her black gloved hand.

"Apologies for the delay, Master," the figure said with a robotic female voice, not evening glancing over her shoulder. "Are you unharmed?"

Xander cracked a light smile as he briefly glanced over at his partner and longtime companion. She was an android with fair skin, large magenta eyes, and pastel blue hair that fell past her waist. She wore sci-fi style white armor plating on her legs, arms, and torso, with black, red, and blue detailing. One of her arms is black, which matches her neck brace. She also wore a large white, black, and red helmet which cover her forehead. There was a blue core crystal on her chest that was shaped like a long downward-pointing triangle, the same crystal that was on Xander's sword. Her name was Kos-Mos, and she was Xander's Blade.

"I'm alright, Kos-Mos," the silver-haired Driver replied, taking advantage of enemies' surprise. "Are the others here too?"

"Yes. They will arrive in approximately eight seconds."

Almost as soon as she said that, a torrent of water and two large bombs suddenly appeared and struck the Volffs, creating a medium-sized explosion. Kos-Mos quickly protected her Driver from it, as well as the shockwave created from it, with her ether barrier. The shockwave did push the duo back a few feet though.

Four new figures emerged from under the trees. The first was a young man, around eighteen, with shoulder-length black hair and silver eyes. He wore a long-sleeved green tunic, a brown vest and belt, navy-blue pants, as well as black leather gloves and boots. He was wielding a strange red saber that had a blue energy blade and mechanical shield. Just like Xander, he was an Ardainian. His name was Ethan.

By Ethan's side was a young woman with long purple hair that flowed down to her waist and orange eyes. She wore a black bodysuit with red accents, long black gloves and armored black boots that went up her arms and thighs respectively, as well as a long red scarf that draped down her chest. She had a circular orange crystal on her upper chests, as well as faint orange lines around some parts of her mechanical body. The artificial Blade, Poppi, who Ethan had built by himself.

The third figure was a short girl who was around seventeen years old with a petite frame. She had neck-length silver hair styled with a bob cut with feline ears of the same color. She also had amber eyes, three white stripe tattoos on her face and elongated canine teeth. Her outfit consisted of a feline-hooded yellow one-piece jumpsuit with gold trimmed white armor plates around her chest and upper arms, a brown utility belt that held three small daggers, and red and white heeled boots which come up at the top into large decorated white and black cones, which extended past her knees around the front and around her calves from the back. She was a Gormotti named Nia and her main weapons were her twin rings.

By her side was her Blade, Dromarch. Unlike the other blades, his form was that of a large, thick-furred white tiger. He wore various pieces of pearl-white armor on his legs and chest. His blue core crystal was in the middle of his chest and resembled a claw.

"We sure cleaned house with our attacks!" Ethan praised. "Those beasts got nothing on us."

"It's too early to celebrate," Nia chided cynically. "There are still a few of them left."

True to the Gormotti's word, while most of the Volffs had been taken out by the new arrivals' surprise attack, there were a few survivors that weren't as injured, allowing them to recover and get back on their feet. There were about five of them left.

"My lady," Dromarch said in a formal tone. "May I suggest we finish this battle and put these creatures out of their misery?"

"Sure," Nia agreed before glancing over her shoulder and looked at a random direction. "But I think _he_ should get some action in this as well."

The remaining Volffs split up in groups to take on the Drivers, with two heading to Xander while three charged at Ethan and Nia. Ethan and Nia readied their weapons and got into a fighting stance, but it was unneeded as a silver blur rushed from under the trees and effortlessly killed the three beasts with one slash.

The figure revealed himself to be a tall, well-built man with shoulder-length white hair, fair skin and blue eyes, who looked to be in his late twenties. He was garbed in white and silver armor, with lower part resembling a twin-tailed overcoat, and silver fingerless gloves. He wore a horned silver facemask that exposed his mouth and wielded a black nodachi that had a diamond-shaped blue crystal embedded in the hilt.

"Showing off as usual, Jin," Ethan said teasingly as he and his group approached the swordsman. "Sometimes I think you like doing it."

Jin flicked the blood off his sword before facing the Ardainian. "I don't try to show off," he said passively. "I just do what I can to protect our group."

"Yes, but you always do it in such a dramatic way," Nia added with a sly grin.

He didn't reply to that. It was quite common for Ethan and Nia to take jabs at the mostly silent man, even on the battlefield. It didn't really bother him as it showed their close bond despite Jin having only joined one year ago. However, it did bring back memories that he buried deep within his heart. Memories of an age where remnants of it remain to this day.

Jin turned towards his leader, who was fighting the last two Volffs with Kos-Mos. He knew he didn't need to interfere, so he simply stood back and watched.

The Volffs tried to attack Xander from the sides, which could have worked had he been alone, however, since Kos-Mos was here, she could easily intercept one. One of the beasts pounced and readied to sink its teeth around the Blade's throat, but Kos-Mos simply shielded herself with her left arm. She did feel some pain from the bite as white ether leaked out from the wound. Despite this, however, the blunette didn't even flinch.

Even if a monster had somehow managed to inflict a grievous wound on her, Kos-Mos will not stop protecting her master. It was her duty as his Blade to put her very life on the line for him, at least that was how she saw it. What made this task easier was that Blades possessed a very potent regeneration ability, allowing them to heal from even the most serious of wounds in just a few minutes. As long as their core crystal and their Driver is alive, the Blade can keep living.

The android glanced over at her shoulder and watched Xander block the other Volff with his sword before quickly knocking it away. He ran at the beast and leapt into the air, holding his sword above his head. As he descended, he swung the blade down, cleaving the Volff in two.

Immediately after his feet touched the ground, he threw his sword at his partner. "Finish this, Kos-Mos!" he ordered firmly.

As if those words were the key she needed, Kos-Mos quickly sprung into action. She struck the Volff in the stomach with her knee hard, causing it to yelp and let go of her arm. She then effortlessly caught the white sword in her right hand. Wanting to fulfill her Driver's order to end this battle, Kos-Mos activated her Gravity Shell, which caused pink energy blades to materialize around her waist, shoulders, forehead, and core crystal.

Gravity Shell was essentially her battle form, something that is unique to her, increasing her power and allowing Kos-Mos to use her strongest attacks, Her Arts. Arts are powerful attacks that both Drivers and Blades can use by harnessing ether energy, albeit in different ways. Blades first absorb the ether energy within the atmosphere and manifest it within their core crystals. They then channel that power into their weapons, which is essentially a part of them, which their Drivers wield.

Unlike Blades, humans are unable to harness ether energy on their own. The only way they can do so is by resonating with a Blade to become a Driver. The human then becomes able to use ether energy to unleash Arts by wielding the Blade's weapon, which the Blade supplies with their own power.

However, while it seems that Blades have such a huge advantage over humans with this ability, it isn't the case. If a Blade uses their powers too carelessly or too much, they will become exhausted and run out of power, leaving them helpless. They will eventually recover by drawing more ether from the air, but it takes time, and every second is critical in a battle. It is much more efficient for a Blade to conserve their energy and unleash their Arts only when needed. This apparently led to Drivers wielding the Blades' weapon, though how that idea even got started was unknown.

The Art Kos-Mos was preparing to use was her weakest one. The three-hit special attack, R-Blade. First, she struck the beast with two horizontal slashes before morphing her sword into a blaster and finished it off with a barrage of energy bullets. The Volff let out one final whimper before succumbing to its wounds and fell limply on the grass.

After deeming that the threat has passed, Kos-Mos disengaged her Gravity Bind and changed her weapon back into a sword before returning it to her Driver.

"Nice work as always, Kos-Mos," Xander said sincerely as he sheathed his sword to his waist.

"It is nothing, Master," the android said in her usual emotionless tone. "I am just doing my duty to protect you."

Xander let out a light sigh as the rest of the group sheathed their weapons and approached the duo.

"I'm honestly surprised that your plan worked, Xander," Nia admitted, her arms folded across her chest. "Using yourself as bait to lure that Volff pack out into the open. While it was somewhat clever, it was very reckless. Had those beasts caught up to you before we arrived, you'd be dead. Even you can't take on a horde of monsters on your own."

"Relax, Nia," Ethan said casually. "Kos-Mos herself determined the best possible route for Xander to take that had the least amount of risk. She wouldn't have let him go alone if she couldn't find one."

"Ethan's right," Poppi agreed. "Plus Kos-Mos is super strong. If the plan went south, she could get Xander to safety."

When it came to the strength of their Blades, Kos-Mos is easily considered to be their strongest Blade. She was of the Light element, an exceedingly rare elemental affinity that hasn't been seen in Alrest in 500 years. Even Xander didn't know why the android Blade was of that element. Kos-Mos was a gift from his late mother, Ceres, though how she had her core crystal was a mystery. It didn't really matter to the silver-haired Driver as he was grateful to have a partner at all.

Ever since Xander had left his home in Mor Ardain due to circumstances at the young age of fourteen, Kos-Mos had been one of his only companions. However, life in the outside world proved to be more difficult than the Ardainian had thought, with him struggling to find a way to make money to survive. Luckily, a man named Klaus took him in and trained him on how to be a proper Driver. He was even like a second father to the teen.

Xander made his living by selling his services as a freelance mercenary. He took almost any job, whether they would be monster extermination or trivial stuff like material gathering. The only exception was jobs that involved joining any armies. Sure, if he accepted such a position, he wouldn't have to worry about finances or his next meal anymore. He didn't dislike the military by any means, he just rather not get involved.

"Anyway," the silver-haired Driver spoke up, getting the rest of his mercenary group's attention. "Now those Volffs won't be attacking any more unsuspecting lumberjacks. We should head back to Torigoth and report to our employer."

"Agreed," Kos-Mos replied with a nod. "We should depart immediately. If we leave now, we should reach Torigoth by sunset."

Nia let out a sigh. "Do you have to say things so matter-of-factly, Kos-Mos?" she asked sarcastically. "We don't need to hear all those details every time."

"That is just how Lady Kos-Mos is, my lady," Dromarch replied. "Besides, there are advantages to knowing our arrival time."

The Gormotti didn't respond. Instead she merely let out a groan before the group set out.

* * *

Just as Kos-Mos calculated, the mercenary group arrived at Torigoth at sunset. Unlike most of the other Titans, Gormott is very rural with not many towns or cities. To compensate for this, the lands here were very fertile and produced excellent harvests and lumber. However, that made Gormott very sought after by the other nations and is what led to Mor Ardain to annexing it to support its own population.

There was a military faction stationed here in Torigoth, the largest city on the Titan, mainly to maintain Mor Ardain's power over the land and to recruit new soldiers and Drivers. The consul that managed the land was pretty incompetent too, but Xander didn't complain since it gave him more job opportunities.

He and his group went to the lumber mill, which was located outside the city walls, and met with its manager, the man who had employed them, and delivered their report.

"I am glad to hear that the threat has been taken care of," the manager said in relief. "You Origo Mercenaries sure live up to your reputation."

"It was nothing," Jin replied passively.

"Plus we couldn't just ignore those lumberjacks being attacked by those beasts," Poppi added. "It is our duty to help those in need."

"That, and we needed the gold," Xander said sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head.

"Xander!" Ethan said in shock. "You didn't need to say that."

"Sorry," the silver-haired Driver huffed out, arms folded across his chest, "but our funds are really tight right now thanks to a certain someone blowing most of it on random junk or machine parts." He then delivered a one-eyed disapproving glance at his fellow Ardainian.

Nia simply giggled in response. "He's got you there, Ethan," she added, trying but failing to hide her smirk. "Then there's all those cylinders you bought to try salvaging, but you never managed to make a decent profit to cover the expenses."

"And all the different outfits you got to dress up Poppi," Jin said with a slightly amused smirk.

Ethan simply slouched in defeat. "Oh, right," he said in misery, while his artificial Blade comforted him by patting his shoulder.

"Anyway, our payment if you would be so kind," Xander said politely as he extended his hand towards the manager.

"Oh, of course." The older Gormotti went into his office for a minute before coming back out and handed the mercenary leader a leather bag tied by string. "Here's everything. 10,000 gold, as promised."

Xander handed the bag over to Kos-Mos, who used her analytical mind to confirm that it was the exact payment. He hated distrusting his employers, but he has had incidents were people have tried to scam him out of his payment. If that ever happened, Xander would use some "persuasion" to get his fair dues before cutting ties with them forever. Thankfully, this manager would not require such measures, which was good as Xander preferred having a decent reputation when it came to his mercenary work.

With their payment received, the group decided to head back to their base. The Origo Mercenaries had a handful of bases scattered around Alrest, with most of them hidden to prevent any intruders from getting in. The one in Torigoth was of their main bases and one where they took job requests from.

The small mercenary band proceeded to the Torigoth pavilion, where they saw a crowd of people gathered there. Xander could also spot three Ardainian soldiers behind a booth that had a core crystal. The soldiers kept blabbering about all the benefits citizens would get if they became Drivers and joined the Ardainian military.

"Seriously?" Nia said in annoyance. "Another recruitment campaign? Haven't they got enough Drivers in their bloody army already?"

"The success rate for core crystal resonance has been decreasing as of late," Kos-Mos answered. "There is a high probability that Mor Ardain has run out of potential candidates in their military forces."

"I agree," Jin added, his arm folded across his chest. "I've heard tensions between Mor Ardain and Uraya have been high as of late. It makes sense that Mor Ardain would be preparing for war."

Xander let out an annoyed grunt as he looked away in shame. It was depressing to see his homeland prepping for something that would kill thousands of people on both sides. He heard Poppi comment that a middle-aged Gormotti male had approached the recruitment booth, likely wanting to attempt to resonate with the core crystal. He lifted his gaze to see what would happen.

The Gormotti greedily placed his hand on the core and attempted to resonate with it, however the white light that came out of it was erratic and the man started to shriek in pain as the power within it began overwhelming him.

"He's a goner," Nia commented nonchalantly.

"Yep," Xander said, resting his right hand on his waist.

A few seconds later, fountains of blood spurted out of the male Gormotti and he fell silent before falling limply on the ground. Ethan looked ready to barf from the sight, with Poppi trying to soothe him by rubbing circles on his back, while Xander and the others didn't seem to be affected.

"That was a lot of blood," Poppi said slowly as they watched two of the soldiers carry the corpse away.

"That's what happens when someone unworthy tries to resonate with a core crystal," Dromarch said inquisitively. "It takes a certain aptitude to become a Driver. Ethan was lucky to only get a three-day nosebleed when he attempted one. Most cases of unworthy applicants end in either death or comatose."

"It's a shame that you can't become a Driver in the traditional sense, Ethan," Xander added. "But it led you to creating Poppi. I think you've got potential to be a great Driver."

Ethan managed to recover from his sickness and faintly smiled. "Thanks, Xander. It means a lot to hear that from you. It's thanks to you and Klaus that I was even able to finish Poppi at all. I don't think I can ever fully repay you two for that."

The silver haired Ardainian simply chuckled as he watched a younger Gormotti male, around the age of the mercenaries, approach the core crystal. The Gormotti's resonance attempt went much more smoothly, with the light being stable and him not being overwhelmed by the crystal's power. The crystal then morphed into a great lance and a generic Blade appeared by the man's side. Blades with unique appearances are very rare, but they were also stronger than the generic Blades, making the unique ones highly sought after.

"We don't need to see the rest of this," Jin spoke up. "Let's get going."

The others agreed and continued on their way. Their base was located in the southern residential district, near the docks. It was built into a cliff and kept largely out of sight. Their base was of moderate size, allowing everyone to have their own space and rooms. It also had a good view of the Cloud Sea and a space for a certain someone.

The group arrived with no issue, however, as they entered they saw a certain blonde-haired man wearing a white lab coat sitting at the table. He looked to be either a Leftherian or an Ardainian.

"Klaus?" Xander said in genuine surprise. "I wasn't expecting you back for another three days."

Klaus, like Jin and Ethan, wasn't a Driver, but unlike the other two, he didn't do any actual fighting. Instead he acted as an advisor for the Origo Mercenaries and helped secure any potential jobs. It was thanks to him that the Origo Mercenaries even existed as aside from Ethan, Klaus had recruited everyone into the group. Despite this, Xander was still considered the leader. Klaus also had a habit of running off to do research on Alrest's ancient history. Why he did so wasn't entirely clear, but no one really seemed to care as long as it didn't affect them negatively.

The blonde-haired man simply smiled at his surrogate son. "Sorry for my sudden return, but I've got some news I need to share. Just to check before we start, Xander, you are from Leftheria, correct?"

"Yeah, that's where my mother was from anyway. Why?"

"Oh, nothing," Klaus passed off. "Anyway, I got a message from Chairman Bana of the Argentum Trade Guild. He wants to hire you specifically as a bodyguard for a salvaging job. The others are invited too. The total pay is 200,000 gold, with half of it as the advance."

"What?!" Xander exclaimed in disbelief.

"200,000 gold!" Ethan added eagerly. "That's a lot of money. We'd be set for months with that. Let's do it!"

"Hold on," Jin said firmly. "Something about this offer feels off. Chairman Bana is specifically after our leader and is willing to pay an extraordinary amount of gold for his services. That's very suspicious."

"Jin's right," Nia agreed while brushing her bangs with one hand. "This all sounds fishy. Did Bana go into any detail on what this salvaging job is about or who the employer is?"

Klaus shook his head. "He did not. However, I do have an idea on what it could be and that's why I'm back so soon. A few days ago, I detected some strange shifts in an uncharted area. I did some scans and detected a sunken ship in that area. Bana or his employer must have detected that ship as well. From what I heard from Argentum, Bana's bringing together a team of highly skilled salvagers for this job."

"If the Chairman is going to these lengths, then there must be something on that ship that he wants," Kos-Mos spoke up before facing her partner. "Master, what should we do?"

Xander was silent for a few moments as he gathered his thoughts. "Hmmm… If I know the Chairman, he wouldn't do something unless he can make a profit off of it, no matter how dangerous or shady it is," he said slowly. "I'm getting a bad feeling from this thing. We can't ignore this, but we can't cooperate with Bana either."

"Obviously," Nia replied in her usual tone. "But how are we supposed to retrieve whatever's on that ship? It's deep under the Cloud Sea."

"Actually, my ship has a way to bring that sunken ship to the surface," Klaus replied. "I've been working on it for a few years. Now it's time to see if it'll work."

"You don't even know if it'll work?!" Ethan and Poppi shouted in exasperation.

Jin let out a groan and shook his head. "This just gets better and better."

"Indeed," Dromarch added. "Well, then, Master Xander. What shall we do?"

Xander paused for a moment as all eyes fell on him. He actually felt hesitant on what to say. He had a feeling that this particular mission would be riskier than the others he has done. He didn't even know if he could guarantee the safety of his teammates if he went through with his mission. However, he had a feeling that he couldn't ignore this either. Plus he was curious on what could be on this ship that Bana would want his help this badly.

"We're going to investigate this ship ourselves," Xander declared, maintaining a firm tone. "However, this is strictly a voluntary mission. If anyone doesn't want to go, please say so now. I won't hold it against you if you want to."

"There's no way in hell I'm missing this," Ethan said confidently. "Even if we don't get paid, I still want to see this ship myself."

"Me too!" Poppi added enthusiastically.

"Dromarch and I are going too," Nia said in a casual tone. "Someone will have to patch you boys up if you get hurt."

"I'm coming as well," Jin said. "I'm guessing you're coming too, Kos-Mos."

"Of course, I am," the blunette confirmed in her monotone voice. "If my master wishes to go to this ship, then I will accompany him to protect him. That is my duty after all."

Klaus couldn't help but smile at the sight. He was glad that the group didn't need much convincing for this volunteer mission. He needed their help to retrieve what lied inside that sunken vessel, or more specifically, Xander's help. He couldn't let _her_ fall into the wrong hands. He could only hope that they will make it time.

"If we are all in agreement, then we should leave at once," he said firmly. "It'll take a day or two to reach our destination and I don't know when Bana's team will set out. We must reach that ship before they do. Time is of the essence."

"Understood," Xander replied with a nod. "Everyone, pack only what you need. We leave in half an hour."

"Okay," the others acknowledged.

The Origo Mercenaries split up to quickly pack whatever they needed. Once they were done, they proceeded to the hidden dock, which contained Klaus's ship, the Galahad. Unlike other ships in Alrest, this one didn't require a Titan to function. Apparently, Klaus had found the Galahad years ago on a random island-sized Titan while exploring the Cloud Sea. It was broken when he found it and repaired it over time. The technology in it was very impressive, way more advanced than anything Xander has ever seen on the Titan vessels. Supposedly the Galahad could also submerge itself beneath the Cloud Sea, but the Origo Mercenaries never had a reason to use it before. It also has several advanced weaponry, but only the basic cannons were currently functional at the moment. Finding parts to maintain and repair the Galahad were very hard to come by, not to mention Klaus and Ethan continue to struggle with understanding the ship's technology.

Once everyone boarded on the black vessel, Klaus immediately pulled the Galahad out of the dock and set sail.

"Klaus, have you notified Azurda about this?" Xander questioned as he realized that one of their members had been missing during their discussion. He and Klaus were in the bridge, with Klaus at the helm. Everyone else were settling in their rooms.

"I have. He said that he'll stand by and act if he needs to," the advisor replied.

"That's fine. Submerge the Galahad. We don't want to risk being followed."

"Roger," Klaus said as he obeyed his orders and sent the Titanless ship underneath the surface of the Cloud Sea. He then began setting a course for the uncharted region that contained the mysterious sunken ship. "Xander, I feel I should tell you that if we do this, we may end up changing all of Alrest for good. Are you sure you want to go through with this?"

The Ardainian Driver simply chuckled in amusement, resting his hand on his waist. "This isn't like you, Klaus. You don't normally question me this much," Xander said casually. "That gives me the impression that this must be important to you. I owe you a lot for everything you've done for me and Kos-Mos. If I can repay you even just a little bit by going through with this mission, then I'll gladly do it."

Klaus couldn't help but smile warmly at that. "Thank you, Xander. I promise to make sure that this will be worth all your effort. If that ship contains what I think it does, then we can't allow it to fall into Bana or his employer's hands."

Xander simply nodded in agreement, silently wondering what could be awaiting them within that sunken ship.

**To be continued**

* * *

**Welcome to my reboot of Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Bonds! As mentioned in my earlier author's note, I'm not really proud of that story, but it did help me grow more comfortable with writing original content and I am grateful for that. It was thanks to my experience with writing Bonds that the Demon War arc in Dark Swordsman 2 (originally I was going to skip it entirely and jump straight into its sequel, with there only being flashbacks showing the war; luckily I realized that that was a stupid idea and wrote the arc in its entirety) and all the original content for Black Wolf were able to happen. One thing I should mention is that the crossover arc between Bonds and Dark Swordsman will happen in this story, but it will be changed to fit into the new context on both sides (plus I hate that I had put that dragon form for Marth. I don't know what I was thinking with that. At least with the Yugioh cards that are in Black Wolf, it's not exclusive to him and I can do some interesting stuff with them). This new crossover arc will be the canon version. I'm not gonna update the one in Dark Swordsman 2, mostly cause I don't have the patience and I don't want to get potentially flagged by the site. Anyway, I'll see you guys next time!**

**Edit (10/20/2020): Okay I'll be putting this note in both this chapter and the next one to clear up some confusion regarding Klaus. Yes, he still did the experiment and created Alrest, that didn't change. If you've read my original story, you may already have an idea on how Klaus is with Xander and his group. To keep spoilers down to a minimum, this Klaus is indeed the Architect, but not entirely. All of that will be revealed MUCH later on in the story. For now, think of this Klaus having a similar to role to Alvis, a character that knows more than he's letting on and does things for a specific reason.**


	2. The Aegis

Kos-Mos was sitting on her bed in her and her Driver's shared room, waiting for his return. The Galahad was a medium sized ship and had a good number of bedrooms for its crew, but the android always insisted to stay in Xander's room since they had a history of sharing inn rooms prior to Klaus taking them in. The reason that the duo had shared inn rooms was largely due to a lack of gold and because Xander was an inexperienced Driver at the time. Because of the latter, Kos-Mos was always very protective of her master, always prioritizing his safety over everything else whenever they got attacked, either by monsters or bandits who sought to take the android for their own. However, no matter what the threat was, Kos-Mos annihilated them all without hesitation.

As Xander grew stronger over time as well as meeting Ethan and the others, though, she slowly lowered her protective protocols. The only exception was the whole sharing rooms when they were on missions, though Kos-Mos's justification for it now is that it's more cost-efficient. Whether Xander actually believed that was neither here nor there, but he chose not to fight it since the android can be very stubborn at times. However, his friends do like to tease him about it, but Kos-Mos was completely oblivious to it.

The bedroom door opened with a hiss, prompting the Blade to stand in alert. It wasn't Xander who entered though, instead it was the new member, Jin. Despite having been teammates for over a year, Kos-Mos still had a hard time reading the masked swordsman. He had joined the Origo Mercenaries after Klaus had supposedly found him on a dying Titan, though where or what that Titan was was unknown.

Jin always seemed distant when it came to interacting with the other members as well. He never spoke about his past and never took his mask off. However, the masked swordsman wasn't the only one in the group who never shared his past, so the android never really found that suspicious. Not even Klaus spoke much about what he did prior to meeting her and Xander.

Jin did prove himself useful with his incredible battle capabilities. When it came to physical strength and speed, he was superior to the Drivers and Dromarch, only losing to both Kos-Mos and Poppi. Jin didn't have a Blade of his own, instead using his nodachi, which can harness ether energy in the atmosphere, to use Arts. How this worked was unknown to the android, but she assumed that it was similar to how Ethan's saber and shield functioned, as he wasn't a traditional Driver as well.

"Do you have business with me, Jin?" Kos-Mos questioned.

The masked swordsman leaned on the wall opposite of the Blade, his arms folded across his chest. "In a way, yes," he answered slowly, as if trying to determine his words carefully. "I was hoping we could exchange information."

Kos-Mos raised an eyebrow and cocked her head to the side slightly. "Exchange information? Why?"

"Well, it's no secret that I haven't been the most social member of the Origo Mercenaries. Klaus even told me to try opening up a little as we were getting ready for this mission. With Xander being our leader, I figured that I'd start with him and you."

"I see," the android replied as she studied the swordsman carefully. "However, details regarding my master's past are classified and require his approval to be shared with anyone else. This is not only his safety, but for the safety of everyone around him."

Jin let out a heavy sigh. With how strict and rigid the Light Blade could be, he knew that there was little he could get from talking with her. It was a miracle Xander had any social skills whatsoever from being around her for so long. Supposedly, besides Kos-Mos, only Klaus knew Xander's secret. Jin knew that the Driver was a mix between Leftherian and Ardainian, and that he was born in Mor Ardain, however Xander was always determined to avoid that nation at all costs, regardless of the pay he would get from mercenary jobs. The most he would do was go to the towns on the outskirts of the Titan, and even then, he kept his visits brief.

The words Klaus told the white-haired swordsman before meeting the group soon resurfaced in his mind. _"Like you, everyone in the Origo Mercenaries has a tragic past. We're almost like a family of outcasts. We all have a reason for hiding. However, if you can learn to trust each other completely, heh, I doubt even the Architect could stop you."_

That last part almost made Jin laugh. As if anyone, much less a small band of Drivers, could ever take on the Architect. Everyone in Alrest knows the legend of its creation. According to the religious texts of Indol, humans used to live in a land located on top of the World Tree, which was the center of Alrest. This land is known as Elysium and it is the domain of the divine father, the Architect. Elysium was a bountiful land, an endless field of green, a utopia.

However, for reasons unknown, the Architect ended up banishing the humans from Elysium, forcing them to live in Alrest. Life here proved to be very difficult and when it seemed that humans would be wiped out, the Architect took pity on them. He sent his servants, the Titans, and allowed humans to settle on them. Humans and Titans have lived in harmony ever since, though that didn't stop the occasional war between the different nations.

_"It's not helping that the Titans are starting to die off,"_ Jin thought to himself. _"They're the only land we have in this world and it's starting to sink beneath the Cloud Sea. Even the continental Titans, like Gormott and Uraya, are slowly dying."_

With living space running out, it is not a surprise to hear talks of war as nations struggle to secure more land for their people. The Ardainian Titan, which is arguably one of if not the oldest Titan in the world, and it is dangerously close to the end of its lifespan. Because of that, harvests and food production there have been very poor, making it difficult for the empire to support its massive population. This led to them annexing Gormott so they could have access to more food and fertile land for crops.

What puzzled Jin was that to his knowledge, there was no land being remade to replace and expand upon the aging Titans. While parts of his memory were still hazy from his long slumber, he could still vividly remember hearing about _that_ cycle from that man. In fact, in all of the history books he's read, that cycle isn't even mentioned, lost to the ages.

_"That doesn't make any sense,"_ Jin thought in bewilderment. _"I know that Torna was destroyed during the Aegis War, but I didn't think_ that _would be forgotten. Could someone have erased it from history? But why?"_

"Is something wrong, Jin?" Kos-Mos spoke up, snapping him out of his thoughts. "You look troubled."

"It's nothing," he passed off, silently hoping that the Blade wouldn't push further. "Just reminiscing."

The blunette just stared at him passively, making it difficult to tell if she knew he was lying or not. She looked ready to say something when suddenly a familiar voice could be heard from the speaker.

"Kos-Mos, can you come to the command room?" Xander said. "Klaus and Ethan want to do some last-minute tuning on the device and need your help with the calculations."

Kos-Mos went over to the speaker, which was located by the door, and pressed the button with one finger to speak into it. "Understood," she replied in her usual tone. "I shall go immediately." She removed her finger from the speaker and glanced at her teammate. "Apologies, but we will have to continue this conversation later. My master needs me."

"It's alright," Jin replied. "See you later."

The android gave her own farewell before marching out the room and towards the command center. After a minute or two of waiting, Jin decided to leave as well, but went in the opposite direction to return to his room.

"So, I'm guessing Kos-Mos didn't tell you anything?"

Jin halted in his tracks before turning around to see none other than Nia, who was standing in front of her door, arms folded across her chest. She was the healer of the group, patching up wounds with either first aid or her Healing Arts. Her Blade, Dromarch, was a decent Blade that complimented her role, however, Jin felt that something deeper lied in the Gormotti girl's Arts.

"Yeah, but I can't really blame her," Jin confirmed. "Everyone in the Origo Mercenaries has their secrets, and we all have our reasons for hiding them."

"Yep," Nia said as she brushed her bangs with one hand. She looked down at the metal floor, eyes full of longing. "Jin…do you think we'll ever reach a point where we can accept each other fully? Can the seven of us create a place where we can all belong?"

The masked swordsman was taken aback by the question. Nia always seemed to be a cynical and sarcastic person. It was strange to hear her admit to having such thoughts.

A memory then flashed deep within the swordsman's mind. He was inside some kind capsule in a dark room. On the other side of the glass, he saw a woman with brown hair, which was tied back in a thin ponytail, and golden eyes. She had a puncture wound on her stomach, staining her white shirt with her blood. Her skin was unhealthily pale, likely from the blood loss.

"I'm so sorry, Jin," she said in sorrow. "At least this way you'll still remember me. Goodbye."

The memory cut out, bringing him back to reality, but it didn't stop the pain from returning. He had failed his promise to her, and she paid the ultimate price for it. He didn't deserve to keep his memories of her. "I don't know," Jin answered honestly. "It may not happen immediately, but maybe one day, we'll all be able to reach out to each other without any fear."

Nia's eyes widened in disbelief for a moment before it was replaced with a light smile. "Thanks, Jin. I hope that can happen." She turned around and was about to go into her room before glancing at him one more time. "Oh, don't tell the others about this. I don't need any pity points from them."

Jin couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Alright. Your secret's safe with me."

The Gormotti gave her thanks before proceeding into the cabin, closing the door behind her. Meanwhile Jin turned and continued heading to his room. As he trotted down the hall, he couldn't help but wonder if someone like him deserved forgiveness, much less a place to belong. Could he bring himself to have a partner once more?

* * *

The next two days were largely uneventful. There was the rare monster attack by a group of Lexos, but the Galahad's cannons were enough to drive them away. By the time the sun had gone down, they had arrived at their destination. When Klaus gave the alert, everyone gathered in the command room, which had a few bookshelves, chairs and a large table (which was located in the center).

The Galahad was shaking a little from the currents, but that was largely because of the storm that was happening above the surface.

"Like I said in Torigoth, our target is located in a shipwreck in this area," Klaus debriefed to the mercenaries. "It's about 450 peds straight down from where we are. Obviously, we lack the equipment to search the wreck when it's submerged, and even if we did, it's too risky. However, I've got a device that'll allow us to bring it the surface."

"Ah, yes," Nia said sarcastically as she leaned back in her chair. "The device you don't even know will work. Our whole mission hinges on a gamble."

"Actually the odds of it working is pretty high," Ethan admitted. "I'm not that familiar with the technology, but Kos-Mos and I have been reviewing it and we think we can pull it off."

"Correct," Kos-Mos confirmed. "The odds of the first phase succeeding is at ninety-five percent. The remaining five percent is that it will fail and we will be unable to proceed."

"I guess we all better pray that this goes off without any problems," Xander said, sounding a little unsure. "This is the most difficult part of our mission as we lack the proper equipment."

"We _will_ succeed!" Klaus assured. "Anyway, I'll be at the helm, managing everything from there. Everyone else will go with Xander and explore the sunken ship." He then brought out a sheet of paper with an unusual symbol on it and handed it to the team leader.

"What's this?" the silver-haired Driver asked as he examined the paper that was given to him. For some reason, he felt like he had seen it somewhere before, but he couldn't remember where. Unbeknownst to him, Jin (who had glimpsed at it from over his shoulder) let out a silent gasp as he saw it.

"If I'm right, right where the target is, there should be a door with that symbol on it," the blonde man explained. "Xander, you'll need to touch that symbol to get it to open. It has to be you, no one else."

"Okay," Xander said in suspicion. "But why me?"

"I'll tell you after we retrieve our target. Now let's get into position. We don't have a lot of time."

Seeing that they weren't going to get any answers, the rest of the group agreed to end the meeting there and hurried to the entrance to the deck of the Galahad, while Klaus went to the helm. When he arrived, he immediately began typing certain commands on a control console and inserted a key, causing a small square of the console to flip, revealing a small indention that was shaped like a cross.

He then reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a silver core crystal that matched the indent. "Well, Fenrir, looks like we're rescuing your sister," he said softly as he stared at it. "We can't let _him_ find her. Please lend me your strength."

The core crystal didn't react to his words. It never did nor did it allow anyone to resonate with it. Klaus could vividly remember seeing several people trying to awaken the Blade inside, only to be rejected and killed by its power. Even he didn't know why that was the case, so he always kept the silver core with him, not just for their safety, but for the core as well.

Klaus inserted the silver core into the console, causing the core to emit a bright, silver light. He quickly got to work and activated the device, which was an energy beam that would allow him to bring the sunken ship to the surface. Such a device doesn't normally exist within Alrest. Klaus had to travel to _that_ land and scavenge some parts to create it. When it came to power, regular ether energy wasn't going to cut it. Thankfully, the silver core crystal shared a link with a certain all-powerful artifact that his other self had used. He may not be able to use that artifact to its full power, something that even his other self swore off to do given the first time they did so, but something on such a small scale is no problem.

He inputted the final command, prompting a small machine to come out from the bottom of the Galahad. The machine lowered its head towards the sunken ship, which was lying on a sunken, unknown Titan. It then unleashed a golden beam of light, enveloping the ship and causing it to rise to the surface, with the Galahad close behind.

As soon as the Galahad broke from the Cloud Sea's wake, Xander and the others were notified by Klaus that the device he used to bring the ship up will have drained all of the water, allowing them easier navigation. Poppi commented that such a device was incredible and asked how it worked, only for Klaus to deflect by telling everyone to be careful.

"Ethan, did Klaus tell you or Kos-Mos how that device worked or what powered it?" Poppi asked as the group went onto the deck of the Galahad.

"No, he only told us how it worked," the black-haired Ardainian replied. "Apparently the Galahad uses some kind of energy in order to attract objects to it. Where that energy comes, I don't know."

"Even I cannot trace where the energy came from," Kos-Mos added. "However, I can determine that it is not harmful."

"Well that's good to know," Nia spoke up before turning towards the second ship. Just like the Galahad, the once sunken ship was made entirely of metal and didn't seem to require a Titan, however it was way bigger. Unlike the Galahad, the unnamed ship looked more traditional, resembling more like a boat. It had a strange, almost draconic, figurehead and engine (which was located at the back of the ship. It even bore a great resemblance to a Titan.

Xander let out a whistle. "Wow. I've never seen a ship like that before. I wonder which nation made it."

"It doesn't resemble any ships from Uraya or Mor Ardain," Dromarch said thoughtfully. "I doubt even Indol could build a ship like this."

Xander glanced over at Jin, who looked a little uneasy. "Are you okay, Jin?" he asked the masked swordsman.

"Y-yeah," Jin said slowly. "I was just…surprised. I'll be fine."

"Have you seen a ship like this before?"

The nodachi-user hesitated for a moment as he thought of a response. "I think so. I can't remember which nation made it though." That was a lie, but Xander didn't comment on it.

Instead, the Ardainian Driver watched as the Galahad pulled in closer to the other ship and extended a metal walkway to allow the group to reach it safely. Once they were on the ancient ship's deck, they moved on to the second phase: securing an entrance to the ship and retrieving their target. The Origo Mercenaries headed towards the stern of the ship, where what seemed to be the quarterdeck was located, as well as cannons that no longer worked.

The entrance inside the ship was a double metal door, which appeared to be locked tight despite having been submerged within the Cloud Sea for an unknown amount of time.

"Great," Ethan complained. "How are we gonna get in?"

Xander brought his right hand to his chin as he thought of a solution. They could try using the Galahad's cannons to blow the door open, but he didn't know just how sturdy the door was and if the cannons could even pierce it. After a few minutes of thinking it over, he finally got an idea.

"Kos-Mos, can you take out that door?"

"I can," the Blade said with a nod. "Is that what you wish for me to do?"

"Wait, wait, wait!" Nia exclaimed nervously, her arms waving chaotically. "Are you _trying_ to destroy this ship?! Kos-Mos's power is insane! She could probably destroy a whole town if she wants."

Xander turned his head towards the Gormotti, completely unfazed. "Do you have a better idea?" he asked.

Nia couldn't answer. She knew he was right. They were on a time limit, so they had to cut corners when needed. However, she was afraid of seeing what would happen if Kos-Mos unleashed her full power here, in the middle of nowhere.

"Do not worry, Nia," Kos-Mos spoke up to reassure her. "I can minimize the destruction my power can cause to lower any damage to the ship."

She let out a reluctant sigh. "Okay," Nia said in defeat. "It's not like we have a lot of options anyway."

Kos-Mos ordered her friends to get clear as she planted the heel of her boots into the deck and lowered the visor of her helmet to cover her eyes and nose. She did a quick scan on the structure of the door and calculated the precise amount of power she needed to eliminate. Once the calculations were done, she disengaged the safety lock on her power and held her arms down to the ground while four blue energy rods shot out of her waist and shoulders, forming an x. The rods flared with blue ether energy, with her visor soon following.

This was her strongest attack, and the most destructive. The Art called X-Buster. Because of how powerful it was, Kos-Mos resorted to only use it when the situation called for it, such as if there were too many enemies for her friends to handle otherwise. Given the urgency of their mission, she decided to make a small exception.

Once she built up enough ether energy, she unleashed it all through her visor, firing countless curved beams of light at the door. Her attack struck true and created a powerful explosion upon impact, shaking the entire deck. A cloud of smoke surrounded the entrance, but Kos-Mos knew that she had succeeded with her task.

"Confirming destruction of the quarterdeck entrance," she said calmly as her visor and rods retracted while she took on a normal stance. "We can now proceed inside the shipwreck."

Ethan looked to be sweating bullets as he and the others returned to the android. "No matter how many times I see that attack, it always seems to scare me," he admitted nervously. "I'm glad you're on our side, Kos-Mos."

Kos-Mos tossed a questionable glance at the Ardainian. "There is a slight error in your statement, Ethan," she replied. "The side I am on is my master's. His safety is my highest priority. Even the priorities of the other Origo Mercenaries pale before his."

Xander let out a groan as he pinched his nose. "Don't listen to her, Ethan. Despite what she says, Kos-Mos does care about everyone's safety. She's just really committed to protecting me."

Ethan let out a laugh as he cracked a light smile. "I'll say. Anyway, let's get going."

The other mercenaries agreed and proceeded inside the ship. Just as Klaus had said, there wasn't any water, save for a handful of puddles here and there, allowing the group to proceed easily. There were monsters, mainly Krabbles, but they were no threat to the mercenaries, despite slowing them down a little as the group killed them to clear the way.

However, what surprised them was the ship's interior held some resemblance with the Galahad. Xander even speculated that both ships may have come from the same nation. Eventually they managed to reach the bottom of the ship and came across the sealed door of a bunker. There wasn't any power in a nearby console to open the door, but Ethan managed to jury-rig it to brief run on Poppi's energy so he could open the way.

"Guess there's benefits to having an artificial Blade," Nia commented. "You feeling alright, Poppi?"

"I am fine," the artificial Blade replied. "My ether furnace isn't fully ignited, but I should recover by absorbing ether energy from the atmosphere."

"That's good," Jin said. "We don't know what's up ahead. Let's proceed with caution."

"Agreed," Poppi replied.

The mercenaries proceeded into the bunker, where they came across an Aligo. The shark-headed monster turned to face the group and screeched menacingly. Behind it was a door.

"Looks like this thing won't let us past," Xander said knowingly as they drew their weapons. "Let's take it down."

"Yeah!" the others said in agreement.

The Aligo charged at the Oligo Mercenaries, barring its fangs at them, prompting Ethan and Poppi to spring into action. Ethan raised his shield and held his ground as the monster ran its head into it. He let out a pained grunt as the shock of the impact reverberated throughout his body, however thanks to Poppi transferring her power into his weapons, he was able to shake it off. Meanwhile Xander, Nia and Jin broke off and attacked it from the sides.

Nia twirled around and dug her twin rings into the beast's stomach, causing it to howl in pain. The Aligo turned towards the Gormotti and snarled. It readied to lung at her, only for Ethan to fire a small bomb from his shield, striking it in the head. The tiny explosion did damage it and draw blood. This succeeded in regaining the Aligo's attention.

With the beast distracted, Nia ran in and unleashed the Art, Butterfly Slash. The Art was two diagonal slashes, striking the beast's tail and inflicted a breaking sensation on it.

"Xander!" Nia shouted urgently.

The silver-haired Driver nodded in acknowledgement and fired his grapple at the Aligo's right leg. The grapple quickly wrapped around the leg, and as he retracted the wire, Xander pulled on the line with all his might. The combined action managed to topple the monster on the ground.

"You're up, Ethan!" Xander ordered.

Ethan obeyed and unleashed the Art, Soaring Slash, which had him deliver a vertical slash on the Aligo, sending it flying into the air.

"Finish it, Jin!"

"Leave it to me!" the masked swordsman answered as he leapt into the air and delivered a powerful overhead swing into the monster's back, smashing it straight into the floor.

The Aligo let out a weak growl as it tried to pick itself up, but its wounds were too much for it and it limply collapsed. With the threat now eliminated thanks to the group's Driver Combo, the group sheathed their weapons and proceeded to the door the Aligo seemed to be guarding. Upon closer inspection, the group noticed a strange symbol on the door. It was the same symbol that Klaus had shown them.

"I think this is place," Jin spoke up. "Xander, touch that crest. That should open the door."

"Alright. I'll give it a try." Xander placed his right palm on the crest. As soon as he made contact, the crest flashed with blue light. The bunker shook violently, catching the group off-guard as the door suddenly opened, revealing a strange chamber on the other side.

The mercenaries cautiously proceeded inside. Xander was the first to enter and found himself stunned at what he saw. The ceiling looked like it went on forever and the chamber was rather spacious. However, what truly left him speechless was what at the center of the room. There was a white and gold broadsword with a green cross-shaped crystal embedded in the hilt, resting in front of a strange machine.

Attached to the machine was a pod that contained a young woman. She had long blonde hair that went down to her waist and fair skin. She wore a short white dress with numerous golden and green ornaments, a golden tiara with a green gem in the center, white gloves that went up to her shoulders, long black leggings, and white and black boots. There were two green symmetrical crosses on her chest armor as well. Finally, there was a green cross-shaped crystal on her chest, the same crystal on the sword in front of Xander.

She seemed to be sleeping peacefully. It made Xander feel a little guilty for being here. However, he wasn't the only one who was shocked by the sight as the others were too as they entered the chamber. Jin, though, was just as speechless as Xander.

"It can't be," the masked man said in disbelief. "Mythra…"

"Do you know that girl, Jin?" Dromarch questioned.

Jin let out a gasp as he realized his mistake. His teammates were all looking at him warily, waiting for an answer. Seeing no way out, he decided to tell the truth, at least part of it. "I'm sure you all know about the Aegis War, which took place 500 years ago. A terrible event that sent three continents to the Cloud Sea's bed."

"Of course we know that," Ethan answered as if it was obvious. "Almost everyone in Alrest knows about that war. It's a major topic in history class. Heck, it's named after the very Blade that hero Addam used to fight and end it. A legendary Blade known as the Aegis."

Jin let out a deep breath as he carefully prepared what to say next. "Well, I think this girl is her," he spoke up. "The legendary Aegis, Mythra."

The others, except Kos-Mos, gasped in shock. "Wait. That girl's a Blade?" Nia questioned.

Kos-Mos turned her head and stared intently at the sleeping girl. "I can confirm that the crystal on her chest is indeed a core crystal. According to historical archives, a green core crystal is the sign of the Aegis. Therefore, this girl must be the Aegis."

"Now we know why Bana was so eager to get Xander's help," Ethan said. "He and his employer must have known she was here. A Blade like her would be sought out by anyone. But how did you know her name, Jin?"

"Uh," Jin struggled to say as he looked away. "I…remember Klaus mentioning it once whenever I helped him out with his research."

Kos-Mos felt the need to question Jin further, but she noticed that her Driver has been oddly silent. She made her way over to him and saw that he was simply staring at the white sword, the weapon of the Aegis.

"Master?" she asked in concern. "Are you okay?"

Xander didn't answer as he found his gaze drawn to the green core crystal within the hilt of the sword. The crystal was emitting a warm, green light. It was almost…inviting. He could even hear a heartbeat coming from the crystal. He unconsciously reached out and touched it with one hand. The Aegis Sword released countless green particles, causing Xander to stumble backward, but Kos-Mos was able to catch him.

"Are you alright, Master?" she repeated.

Xander was a little shaken over what happened but he soon found his voice again. "Y-yeah," he stuttered out as his Blade let him go. "I don't know what came over me. Anyway, how are we going to get her out of here?"

As if on que, the pod began letting out steam and slowly began to open. Once it was fully open, the Aegis tumbled out, right into Xander's arms, who had moved to catch her. Her sword disappeared as well, dissolving into white ether energy.

"Nn," Mythra groaned as she opened her golden eyes and looked up at Xander. She felt groggy from her long slumber, so her vision wasn't fully focused yet. "Addam. Is that you?"

"Uh, not quite," Xander replied nervously, realizing that he was still holding the girl. Unfortunately, so did Mythra as she shook off her remaining fatigue.

"Ah, back off!" she practically shouted as she pushed him away. "Haven't you heard of personal space?!"

Xander suppressed the urge to groan. Kos-Mos looked ready to attack Mythra, but he signaled his partner to stand down. "You were unconscious and about to hit the floor," he argued as he stood up. "Is it wrong for me to be a gentleman and catch you?"

Mythra's eyes widened before she looked away in guilt. "Oh. No, it's not," she admitted sheepishly, rising to her feet as well. "I guess I should apologize to you, Xander."

"It's fine. You just woke up, after all." His eyes widened in surprise as he realized something. "Wait, how do you know my name?!"

The Aegis folded her arms as she glanced at her sword. "I found out when you touched my sword's crystal," she explained. "But that's not the only thing that happened when you did that. It seems you formed a resonance with me."

"A resonance?" Xander questioned. "Does that mean I'm your Driver now?"

"Seems that way. So would you mind telling me why you're here?"

"We're here for you," Jin took over, catching Mythra's attention. The Aegis seemed surprised to see him, but she didn't interrupt him. "We think some shady people learned about your whereabouts, so we came to retrieve you before they could."

"I see," Mythra said. "I got a basic reading on Xander's personality when we came into contact, so I know you're not lying to me. However, something tells me we're on a time limit."

Nia looked a little impressed by how the Aegis was handling the situation. "You're sure catching on quick."

"Lady Mythra," Dromarch spoke up. "I'm sure you have a few questions for us, but it might be best if you save them for when we are safe. Now that we have you, we need to leave quickly."

"Alright," she replied. "Lead the way."

The Origo Mercenaries, along with the new addition of Mythra, hurried to the exit. Since they had killed all the monsters on their way down, they didn't have to worry about them again and navigation was easy thanks to Kos-Mos and Poppi CPU-like brains. However, as they were nearing the deck, a few explosions could be heard and the ship shook from it.

"What was that?!" Ethan said in fear.

Xander gritted his teeth. "Don't tell me," he said slowly.

The group continued moving with a newfound urgency. Soon they returned to the deck of the ancient ship, the storm still raging. However, they quickly noticed that there was a third ship located opposite of the Galahad. It looked similar to the mercenaries' ship, only it was somewhat bigger. It was firing its cannons at the smaller ship, the Galahad barely holding on by protecting itself with an ether shield.

"Not good," Nia said in frustration. "Whose ship is that?"

"That is the Monoceros," a new voice spoke up. "And it belongs to us."

Xander and the others turned and saw that they weren't alone on the deck. Four figures approached them from the shadows. The first was a man with short jagged black hair and gray eyes. He wore black plate armor with staggered plate pauldrons. In his right hand was a sword tonfa with a blue energy blade. By his side was humanoid Blade with four limbs, a tail, and an elongated head with tiny eyes and a fish-like mouth full of teeth. His skin was blackish-blue with gold-edged armor, large black claws and a pentagonal blue core crystal in the center of his chest.

The third figure was a man who had short black hair and blue eyes. He wore an armored black overcoat, black pants and gloves. He also wore a mask that matched his outfit. He was wielding a black and purple greatsword with both hands. Next to him was a female dark-skinned Blade who had waist length white hair and blue eyes. She wore a helmet that was similar to Kos-Mos's as well as an armored dress with a pleated skirt and high boots. She also wore a pair of glasses and was wielding a black scythe with a violet energy blade.

"I guess we should thank you," the first man said arrogantly. "You brats did all the heavy lifting and retrieved the Aegis for us. Now hand her over."

Xander gritted his teeth in frustration. "So you must have been Chairman Bana's employers," he said before putting an arm in front of Mythra. "However, I'm afraid Mythra's coming with us."

The dark-skinned Blade let out cynical laugh. "It would be wise for you to reconsider," she said with a cold smirk. "Not unless you want to be trampled by Torna."

"Torna!"

That name struck a chord with the mercenaries, and not a good one. Every Driver has heard that name at least once. Torna was the name of a group of terrorists known for killing Drivers and stealing core crystals. No one knows why, but even the strongest Drivers choose to avoid them if possible. Barely anyone who has fought against them has ever come back alive.

"So you know that name," the first man said, retaining his smirk. "Good. I'm Malos by the way, and my Blade's Sever." He tossed a glance at the third man. "That guy's our leader, Julius, and his Blade, T-elos."

"T-elos?" Kos-Mos questioned as she eyed the Dark Blade. That name sounded familiar to her. But why?

T-elos's eyes flamed with fury. "Wait, I know you," she said bitterly. "Julius. Can I crush that Blade beneath my boot?"

Julius, who had been silent up until now, stared at the blunette, as if evaluating her. "Go ahead," he finally said. "That Blade is too much of a risk for us. Better to eliminate her now."

The Dark Blade smiled evilly in response. "Excellent," she replied while getting into a battle stance. "Now then, Kos-Mos. Time for you to be obliterated!"

Kos-Mos detected a tremendous amount of ether energy radiating off of the enemy Blade. She still didn't understand how this Blade knew her name, or this strange sense of familiarity, but one thing was clear to her. Her Driver was in danger.

"Prioritizing safety of Driver," the Light Blade said firmly as she summoned her sword, causing the one Xander had to disappear. "Master, please stand back."

"Kos-Mos, what are you—" Xander didn't get to finish as his partner and T-elos charged at each other, clashing halfway. The strength of their attacks created a powerful shockwave that shook the whole ship and both Blades held their ground. The battle between the Origo Mercenaries and Torna has begun.

**To be continued**

* * *

**Okay, so I was planning on ending this chapter differently but this just felt like a good stopping point. So Xander and his friends encounter Torna for the first time, but Torna has a new member. Since Kos-Mos is in this story, I felt it was fair to have T-elos join the enemy faction since those two are polar opposites. One thing I feel I should say is that since Pyra doesn't exist in Connections, Mythra's character will be handled a little differently. You'll see in the next chapter. Anyway, see you guys next time!**


	3. Escape From Torna

Mythra couldn't believe her eyes. How could Malos still be alive after she sent him plummeting into the Cloud Sea during the final battle of the Aegis War? Just thinking about that terrible battle threatened to overwhelm her with pain and regret. An entire continent was gone because of her, destroyed by her own hand, as well as the deaths of thousands of innocent people that were caught in the crossfire. This just couldn't be real. It couldn't!

"Malos," she said softly, pain etched in her voice as she unconsciously took a step backward.

The second-in-command of Torna simply sneered at the Aegis as the sounds of thunder boomed in the air. "What's the matter, Mythra?" he asked cynically. "Are you afraid of me?" He readied his sword tonfa. "If so, then capturing you will be easy."

Malos ran at the blonde, who was too lost in her thoughts to react. Xander and Jin quickly sprung into action, with the former forcing Mythra aside while the latter clashed blades with the enemy Driver. Jin let out a strained grunt as he held the sword tonfa away from his upper chest, sparks dancing off their locked blades. The Torna Driver's physical strength was incredible, but it felt weaker than it should have been.

"Well, well," Malos said calmly. "I didn't think I'd see you again. Why are you wearing that mask again?"

"I don't have to answer to you, Malos," Jin retorted with a calm bitterness. "Just know that no matter the era, I won't let you have your way."

"Seems I touched a nerve. I wonder if your comrades know what you really are. Should I tell them myself?"

Jin let out a growl before repelling the sword tonfa. He prepared to unleash one of his Arts, but he got hit in the chest by a green cyclone, which sent him flying backward a few feet. He managed to pick himself back up and tossed a glare at Sever while silently cursing himself. In his rush to protect Mythra, he had forgotten about Malos's Blade, an amateur's mistake. He was lucky that the Blade's attack was only to force him back with minimal damage, otherwise he could have been in more trouble.

Malos ran at the masked swordsman, eager to battle him once again, retaining that evil sneer on his face. Nia moved to intercept and swung her twin rings to force the Tornan Driver back. Malos easily evaded and readied a counterattack, however Dromarch unleashed his Wild Roar Art, which was a powerful roar that could knock the enemy back, from the side. Sever got between the tiger and his Driver and blocked the attack with his ether barrier. Unfortunately for Sever, Dromarch's attack was only a distraction as Jin had managed to block a diagonal slash from Malos with his nodachi to protect Nia.

"Thanks," the Gormotti said in gratitude. "Let's fight him together."

"Agreed."

Meanwhile Julius rushed towards the downed Xander, who was still unarmed, only for Ethan to halt his advance with his shield.

"Sorry, but I won't let you pass!" the Ardainian declared. He thrust his sword forward, hoping to stab the masked man in the stomach. Julius was faster though as he instinctively jumped back to evade, not even getting a scratch on his clothes.

The leader of Torna tossed a quick glance at the downed silver-haired Driver. There was something familiar about him, but Julius couldn't put his finger on it. He quickly dismissed the thought. He didn't come here to reminisce on the past, he was here for the Aegis. If Torna could get their hands on her, then they would be one step closer to achieving their goal. These _children_ were just a nuisance waiting to be squashed.

Julius can't expect any assistance from his Blade as she was too engaged in her own battle with Kos-Mos. Both androids looked to be equal in power, at least for now. T-elos has a habit of playing with her prey before she overwhelmingly crushes them under her heel. The pastel blue-haired Blade will soon meet the same fate.

He gripped his sword with both hands and got into a defensive stance before locking eyes with Ethan. "If you want to live, I suggest you move aside," he said coldly.

Ethan found himself flinching in response. It was almost like his opponent's words held some kind of power. However, he couldn't back down. His leader was defenseless right now and as the protector of the Origo Mercenaries, he had to keep their enemies' attention on him instead.

He tightened his hold on his weapons and gave his opponent a forced grin. "I'm afraid I can't do that," he answered in a bold tone. "If you want to get the Aegis, then you'll have to get through me first."

"Very well," Julius answered passively. "Then I'll send you and that Blade of yours to the Cloud Sea's bed. Prepare yourselves!"

Ethan quickly braced himself as Julius charged at him with almost inhuman speed. The masked swordsman swung his greatsword in a diagonal arc, which the Ardainian barely managed to block with his shield. The impact from the swing reverberated across Ethan's body, threatening to make his nerves go numb had Poppi not begun transferring her power to him. He let out a strain grunt as he put all his strength in pushing his shield forward, repelling the greatsword forward before unleashing the three-hit Art, Hyper Strike. The energy blade on his saber flared to life before he spun around and prepared to strike Julius in the waist.

Unfortunately, Julius had already recovered from the initial knockback and quickly blocked the Art with his sword, halting it dead in its tracks. "Too slow," he said simply before knocking the saber away, effectively cancelling the Art and knocking Ethan off-balance.

Julius brought his sword overhead and swung it down hard, attempting to finish the Driver off. Ethan tried to raise his saber in an attempt to block, but the movement was too sluggish. The greatsword struck true and slashed its target across the chest, however, because Ethan had been stumbling backward, the cut left behind was only a minor one, damaging his clothes and drawing some blood. It still hurt like hell though.

"Gaah!" Ethan cried out in pain as he stumbled into his Blade, who managed to catch him in her arms without losing her footing.

"Ethan!" Poppi cried out in worry. Unlike Nia and Dromarch, she had no way of healing her Driver with Arts. It was a miracle that his wound was not fatal.

"So you managed to survive that," Julius said calmly as he slowly approached the duo, his greatsword poised to strike. "But this is where your luck ends."

He attempted to unleash a flurry of slashes on the injured Driver, only for Poppi to grab Ethan's saber and barely manage to block them all by putting her systems into overdrive. Such a process put a massive strain on her body, but she didn't care. She had to protect her Driver at all cost, plus he could fix her later once they were safely away.

Xander, on the other hand, could only watch helplessly as his teammates continued their battle with Torna while he held Mythra closely. Right now, it looked to be at a stalemate, but he knew that it wouldn't last. The Origo Mercenaries hadn't gotten a real break from fighting the monsters inside the ancient ship, while the Tornan Drivers were all at full strength. Then there was the fact that Torna seemed to be way stronger than anyone else that the mercenaries have dealt with. If Kos-Mos wasn't occupied with fighting that strange android, T-elos, they might have a chance at victory.

He found himself shocked at seeing a Blade that looked similar to his partner, but with a complete opposite color palette and personality. He had never seen Kos-Mos meet her match in a fight before and couldn't help but worry over the safety of his longtime companion.

 _"Wait a minute,"_ Xander realized. _"We still may have a chance to win."_

He glanced down at Mythra. She had been unusually silent since the battle began. She didn't even react to him holding her so closely. Instead her eyes looked lost, a look that that he was very familiar with. From his own experiences, Xander could tell that Mythra was feeling some kind of psychological trauma, but he needed her to snap out of it, otherwise none of them would be getting out of here alive.

Mentally preparing himself, Xander turned the Aegis around to get her to face him. "Mythra, you need to focus!" he said with authority. "I don't fully know what you're going through, but you need to get your mind back on the battlefield. If you don't, we're not gonna survive."

Miraculously, as if the Architect himself had interfered, Mythra managed to snap out of her daze. "Huh?" she said in confusion before noticing their positions, causing her face to blush with embarrassment. "Hey, let go of me!" She quickly pushed her Driver away, knocking him onto the metal deck.

"Ow," Xander groaned as he sat up while rubbing his aching forehead. "Are you always going to do this, or is this just a bad day?"

Mythra let out a light chuckle. "I think I'll let you find out for yourself," she replied as she stood up before offering her hand to her Driver. "Anyway, it's time we join the fight. I'll show you the power of the Aegis."

The mixed Ardainian couldn't help but smirk at that as he accepted his new Blade's hand and allowed her to pull him up to his feet. He quickly surveyed the battlefield, determining where he should join in. Jin and Nia looked to be handling Malos and his Blade decently. They should be able to continue just fine without him. Kos-Mos was holding her own too. She had summoned a duplicate of her sword to dual-wield and was keeping up with the Tornan Blade. The Galahad was on its own with handling the Monoceros as Xander had no way of helping Klaus. Thankfully their ship didn't seem to be in that much danger as its ether shields were still holding, allowing it to keep taking the enemy cannonfire.

That left Ethan and Poppi, who were struggling to repel Julius's rapid attacks. The duo were using a vanguard maneuver where one member engages the enemy while the second plays support. Poppi was the offensive member, barely managing to land any attacks on the enemy Driver while Ethan blocked any attacks with his shield to protect her.

"That's where we'll go," Xander declared, with Mythra nodding in acknowledgement. He extended his right hand, prompting the Aegis Sword to materialize from a white light. He gripped the weapon with both hands as its master began transferring her power to it, causing the weapon to open up and allow a golden energy blade to roar to life.

"Let's go, Mythra!"

"I'm with you!"

The renewed duo rushed to join the struggling Ardainian and artificial Blade just as Julius was readying a hard slash on Poppi's back. Xander quickly intercepted the attack with his own sword, locking the two in a stalemate.

"Ethan. Poppi. You guys alright?" he asked without taking his eyes off his opponent.

"Y-yeah. Somehow," Ethan answered. "This guy's on a whole different level. I've never seen a Driver move as fast as him before, except for maybe Jin."

That was interesting for Xander to hear. He had sparred with Jin a handful of times and even he had difficulty with keeping up with the silver-masked swordsman. To learn that there was someone similar was quite intriguing.

"Snap out of it, Xander!" Mythra shouted. "This isn't the time to get distracted. I can't transfer my power to you if you don't focus."

The Aegis was right. This wasn't the time nor place for idle thoughts. With his strength augmented by Mythra's power, Xander was able to repel Julius's sword, who looked somewhat surprised by the action.

"Interesting," Julius mused. "So you're the Aegis's new Driver. Let's see if you can handle that power."

Xander brought the Aegis Sword in front of him, his eyes fully serious. "Bring it," he said simply.

The two swordsmen charged at each other and began exchanging a flurry of slashes, sparks dancing in the air. Thanks to Mythra's power transfer, Xander was able to block most of the Torna leader's attacks and deliver a few of his own, though they were only minor injuries. Julius's swings were like sledgehammers hitting at full-power, and this was without T-elos's interference. Those heavy attacks will eventually wear Xander down, so he needed to end things quickly.

"Mythra, do you have any ideas on finishing this battle?" Xander questioned as he continued trading blows with his opponent. Ethan wanted to join in and assist, but Poppi wouldn't allow it as she didn't want his injury getting any worse.

The Aegis cracked a confident smirk as a thought came to mind. "I've got one trick that should turn the tables," she said smugly. "Just wait and see."

Mythra brought her hands close to her core crystal, which flared to life with green light. She then swung her hands out and unleashed a dome of white light that enveloped the battlefield, but only Xander seemed to notice it. The Aegis Driver's eyes widened in astonishment as he noticed time had stopped save for strange echoes showing the movements of the Torna members.

"What is this?" he asked in confusion.

The golden-haired Blade maintained her smirk and said, "This is Foresight. It's one of my unique abilities. It allows me and my Driver to see predictions of what will happen in the immediate future. It only works in battle though. Read the enemy's movements to find an opening, then counter."

Xander smiled in response as he saw the telegraphed spinning slash from Julius. "Got it," he answered simply before time returned to normal.

With his newfound knowledge, he was able to not only block the leader of Torna's attack, but also repel him backward, much to Julius's shock.

"How did you do that?" he questioned intently. Both Ethan and Poppi were equally surprised.

"Like I'd tell you," Xander retorted. "Let's do this, Mythra!"

"I'm right behind you!" the Aegis replied before she and her Driver began their assault on the masked swordsman.

Meanwhile, T-elos was getting rather frustrated that she was having this much trouble getting the upper hand on her opponent. She knew from her past battles with her fellow android that Kos-Mos was a fierce fighter, but she didn't expect to see this much resistance. This angered her immensely. She was supposed to be superior to the Light Blade in every way, and yet Kos-Mos refused to be destroyed. Just what was motivating her to fight so hard?

"Damn you, Kos-Mos!" T-elos said bitterly as they were locked weapons in another stalemate. Both of them had their Gravity Shells activated, with the Torna Blade's energy blades being purple instead of pink. "Why won't you just die already?!"

"Apologies, T-elos," Kos-Mos answered in her usual monotone voice, though there were some traces of an unknown fierceness in her tone. "But I cannot allow myself to fall here. My mission is to protect my Driver at all cost. I will not allow you to harm him."

"Your Driver, huh?" That explained it. Kos-Mos was always a very dutiful and loyal Blade. Her highest priority will always be her Driver's safety. If she deemed that something was a threat, then she will do whatever it takes to eliminate it.

 _"That gives me an idea,"_ T-elos thought evilly. She tossed a glance over at her Driver, and much to her surprise, had met his match with Xander. It seems that the power of the Aegis was not something to be underestimated.

If she was any other Blade, she might find this action quite cowardly, but she was T-elos, one of the top fighters of Torna. She will do whatever it takes to achieve victory. With a strained grunt, she managed to repel Kos-Mos away before readying to unleash one of her high-level Arts, T-Skylla. First T-elos performed two back-to-back horizontal slashes with her scythe, which were both blocked Kos-Mos's ether barrier. T-elos then followed by crouching, using one hand to support her upper body while spinning her scythe with her other hand. T-elos leapt into the air, grasping her weapon with both hands, and swung it down with a powerful overhead swing, her body spinning as she did so.

As expected, Kos-Mos attempted to defend herself with her ether barrier again. The tip of scythe struck the barrier and after a brief struggle, managed to shatter it. However, the impact pushed the Light Blade, allowing her to narrowly avoid the weapon's bite. But hitting Kos-Mos wasn't the Dark Blade's intention to begin with.

"This ends now, Kos-Mos!" T-elos declared arrogantly as she hovered on her scythe. "Now watch as your weakling Driver dies!" She then fired a single ether shot from blaster strapped to her right arm straight towards the unsuspecting Xander.

Kos-Mos let out a gasp as she realized the other android's intent. Since it was proving difficult for T-elos to overpower the Light Blade, she would go after a weaker target to eliminate her. Her master! Whenever a Driver dies, their Blade returns to their core crystal and lose all their memories, save for their name. If Xander dies, then Kos-Mos would be forced back into her core crystal, rendering her completely defenseless.

"I won't let you!" she said hastily and rushed to intercept the projectile. If she didn't hurry, that attack will hit her Driver in the heart, killing him instantly. She refused to let that happen. She had made a vow to protect him ever since they ran away from home.

Unfortunately, by her calculations, she wouldn't make it in time to save her master's life. All she could do was call out and warn him, praying that he can react in time to dodge.

"Master, look—" Kos-Mos's words caught in her throat as she noticed Xander tense up before he backflipped away from Julius, narrowly avoiding T-elos's cowardly attack, which instead struck one of the ancient ship's cannons, blowing it up.

T-elos's eyes widened in disbelief as she landed back on the deck. "Impossible," she said slowly. "You should be dead."

Despite the near-death experience, Xander casually picked himself back up and dusted off his overcoat with one hand. "Okay, that Foresight of yours really came in handy there, Mythra," he said calmly.

Mythra, who was holding back Julius with her ether barrier, glanced at her Driver with a light smile. "Good to hear. I wouldn't want my Driver dying so quickly."

Kos-Mos found herself sighing in relief. She would have to question her master on how he was able to evade T-elos's attack without even looking but that didn't matter right now. All that mattered was that her master was safe, and she felt overwhelmed by a strange emotion. Was this…joy?

Another emotion followed suit, and it was one that she could easily identify. Anger. Anger that a Blade would even attempt to kill her beloved Driver in such a cowardly method. She will never forgive T-elos for this atrocity. Never.

"You will pay for that, T-elos," Kos-Mos said venomously as she glared at her enemy. "No one hurts my master. _No one._ "

The Dark Blade found herself flinching in slight fear. She knew she was in trouble now. Kos-Mos never expressed any form of emotion. If Kos-Mos was angry, then things were about to get more destructive. This sunken ship may not be able to handle an all-out battle between the two androids. She readied her scythe for the coming attack and mentally prepared herself.

Meanwhile Kos-Mos already decided on what her counterattack will be. She had noticed that Ethan and the others, including Xander, had a few minor injuries. While Jin didn't need to worry too much about that with his continuous battle with Malos as he had Nia and Dromarch healing him, Kos-Mos decided to lighten the strain on the Gormotti Driver.

She dismissed both her swords and disengaged her Gravity Shell, she doesn't need the latter to unleash this Art, and brought her hands up to her core crystal. She lowered her visor and partially released her safety lock, causing ether energy to flare around her. This was one of her strongest Arts at her disposal. The Hilbert Effect Refrain. This Art was an area-of-effect attack with a big range. Not only did it damage any enemies caught within its blast, but it would heal her allies' injuries as well. It is an attack that can change the course of battle.

With a might cry, Kos-Mos unleashed the stored energy as she swung her hands out, releasing a large wave of ether that quickly enveloped the deck.

"What the hell?!" Malos shouted in disbelief. Sever tried to protect him with an ether barrier, only for it shatter instantly when the Hilbert Effect struck it. They then fell victim to the ether wave as it damaged their armor, hindering their movement. Even Julius and T-elos weren't able to escape unscathed.

On the other hand, Ethan and the others found their wounds closing and their strength restored.

"Man, do I love that attack!" Ethan cheered as he picked himself up. "Thanks a million, Kos-Mos!"

Even Jin found himself smirking as the battle turned in favor of the Origo Mercenaries. "Looks like this battle is coming to a close, Malos," he said firmly as he readied his nodachi. "Eat this! Chillstroke!"

After shouting the Art's name, Jin thrusted his nodachi at Malos's chest, who managed to block it by morphing his sword tonfa into a small shield. The silver-masked swordsman wasn't done, however, as he concluded the Art with an upward diagonal slash, which knocked away Malos's weapon.

"Now, Nia!" Jin shouted.

"On it!" the Gormotti acknowledged as she and her Blade closed in.

Sever tried to protect his Driver with his ether barrier, however he was still injured from the Hilbert Effect. This allowed Dromarch to easily shatter it with his Wild Roar Art, allowing Nia to close the distance with Malos. She then struck the enemy Driver's waist with the Art, Gemini Loop, which was a spinning slash attack with her rings, before quickly retreating.

"Damn you!" Malos cried out in anger. "You'll pay for that!"

A strange black aura began to envelop his body. His armor began to repair itself, albeit slowly, and a fierce power could be felt coming from the Driver. It was like nothing the Origo Mercenaries have seen before.

"What the?" Nia said in shock.

"Is that power coming from his Blade?" Xander questioned.

Mythra shook her head. That power was too strong to be coming from a regular Blade. She knew what power it was, and she had to act quickly to protect her new-found comrades. Otherwise, they could meet the same fate as those people from that fallen Titan.

"I need to borrow this, Xander," she said hastily as she grabbed her sword from her Driver before he could respond and rushed towards Malos.

Before he could even complain about being left defenseless again, Kos-Mos tossed him her second sword, allowing him to block a sneak attack by Julius, while she continued her fierce battle with T-elos. The masked man was slightly hindered from the Hilbert Effect, but he was still powerful and very fast. Even without receiving power from either of his Blades, Xander was able to hold off the leader of Torna thanks to the combined efforts of Ethan, Poppi, and Foresight.

Meanwhile Mythra circled around Malos just as he was about to charge at Jin and Nia. She let out a cry as she jumped high into the air and brought her weapon overhead. Malos quickly turned around and managed to block the Aegis Sword from hitting him with his sword tonfa, the two locked in a brief stalemate.

Not letting up her momentum, Mythra swung her legs up and leapt behind Malos with a twirl. As soon as her feet touched the deck, she quickly blocked the incoming counterattack, a diagonal slash, from the Tornan Driver. The two fighters began trading rapid blows with each other, with Mythra backing away upon every clash. Malos attempted to strike her, or at least knock her down, with a spin attack from his sword tonfa, but she was cartwheel away from it.

"Raa!" he cried out in frustration as he halted his spin attack and simply ran at the Aegis.

Mythra stopped her cartwheel and fired two golden blasts of light at her pursuer with two simple swings of her blade. Malos easily cut through the projectiles with his sword tonfa, but he then found the immediate area in front of him to be flooded with blinding golden light. Suddenly Mythra appeared from the light, her sword held in a reverse grip. She slashed upward towards the enemy Driver's chest, only for him to block it with his sword tonfa. The two just stood there, locked in their stalemate.

Jin, Nia and Dromarch simply watched in awe.

"You're pretty sharp for someone who just woke up," Malos said smugly. "Takes me back to five hundred years ago. But you're still holding back. Show me your _real_ power."

Mythra gritted her teeth as she struggled to keep her emotions in check. After the disaster of the final battle of the Aegis War, she had vowed to never use _that_ power again, no matter what. She couldn't handle the burden of causing that much destruction, of causing the world to burn, a second time. Just the first one threatened to overwhelm her, and Malos somehow surviving effectively spat on the graves of everyone who died on that fallen Titan.

"I…I won't let you run rampant again," she declared, more to reassure herself than be a declaration.

However, Malos managed to catch a slight edge of fear in her voice, making him sneer. "Really? Because it looks you want to run away," he goaded. "To run away from me, to run away from yourself. These maggots don't deserve our protection. You know that as much as I do."

Mythra didn't respond as she struggled to keep the Driver back. Something about him definitely felt off. He seemed weaker than before, but the memories of the past made her unable to fight at her full strength. Malos will definitely exploit this. She had to end this quickly.

"By the way, you wouldn't happen to be thinking of going to Elysium, would you?" Malos suddenly questioned as he increased the pressure in their sword lock.

"That's none of your business, Malos!" Mythra bit back. "Where I choose to go has nothing to do with you."

"That's where you're wrong, Mythra. If you're going to Elysium, then I have no choice but to stop you."

They broke their sword lock and Malos attempted to punch the Aegis with a fist of purple energy, but she simply backflipped away and gracefully landed near the edge of the deck. Suddenly Jin noticed that, during the chaos of battle, the Monoceros had managed to circle around the sunken ship to the other side, right where Mythra was. The Titanless ship brought out its cannons and took aim at the unsuspecting Aegis.

"Mythra, behind you!" Jin cried out in warning.

Mythra turned around and just barely managed to raise her ether barrier in time to protect herself from the barrage of missiles the enemy ship fired upon her. Unfortunately her barrier wasn't able to handle the constant attacks, destroying it and sending her backward towards her Driver. Explosions spread across the deck, covering the area in a veil of smoke.

"Mythra!" Xander shouted in worry as he hurried to his other Blade, who was lying on the ground. He knelt beside her and helped her sit up. "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah," she replied. There was a slight ringing in her ears from the multiple explosions, but it was manageable. "I was just caught by surprise is all."

The smoke cleared up, revealing that the Monoceros was ready to strike again with another barrage. The Galahad was trying to redirect the enemy ship's attention to it by firing its own cannons, but the Monoceros was determined to annihilate the Origo Mercenaries. The larger ship's cannons opened fire on the downed Xander and the Aegis. Mythra quickly activated Foresight to see each of the missiles' trajectories. Once she determined a safe pathway, she grabbed her Driver by the waist and disappeared in a flash of golden light.

This was her Lightspeed Flurry ability. It allows her to accelerate her body to reach the speed of light, but only in short bursts. It is also a very taxing ability on her ether reserves, especially since this time she is also accelerating her Driver to move him to safety, so she had to be very strategic with it. Mythra flashed around the deck three times, narrowly avoiding each explosion before finally getting some decent distance from the enemy ship.

Unfortunately the Origo Mercenaries were also getting pushed back, not only from Malos and his allies, but also to evade the Monoceros's cannons. The Torna members formed a line, keeping the mercenaries from getting to their ship.

"This is bad," Dromarch said. "We've been cut off from the Galahad."

"Damn it," Ethan cursed. "Without the Galahad, we're stranded. Xander, what do we do?"

Xander, who was back to using the Aegis Sword, gritted his teeth and clenched his weapon tightly as he wracked his brain to find a solution. Every time things looked to be turning around for the Origo Mercenaries, Torna found a way to change the odds back in their favor. Was this really how things will end?

Kos-Mos noticed her master's hesitation and said, "Do not worry, Master. I will make sure you get out of here alive."

"Kos-Mos," he said softly.

T-elos laughed cynically. "You maggots put up a better fight than we thought," she said snidely. "But this ends now."

The Monoceros's cannons were aimed squarely at the Origo Mercenaries. There was nothing they could do to stop it from firing. Suddenly, right before the Monoceros could fire, a series of large red fireballs struck the cannons, destroying them in multiple explosions.

"Seriously?!" Malos shouted in anger. "Who did that?!"

A loud cry echoed in the air, one that was all to familiar to Xander and his friends. Hope returned to them as a large dragon-like Titan with a long horn on its head and green hair down its neck soared between the two ships before flying up to circle around.

"Uncle!" Xander cried out in triumph, a smile on his face, a sentiment shared with his teammates.

The Titan, Azurda, is the final and oldest member of the Origo Mercenaries. Whenever Klaus wasn't around, the Titan would serve as the group's transport to reach their jobs across Alrest. He didn't do much fighting as he prefers the quiet life, but he would always make exceptions if the mercenaries were in grave danger, like now.

Azurda circled around and gazed at the enemies of his allies, with some members being very familiar to him. The first was the Blade T-elos, whose core crystal should have been lost during the Aegis War after being defeated by Addam and his allies. Then there was Malos. Azurda couldn't understand how he could have survived but he pushed those thoughts away. His comrades were in danger and he needed to act fast.

After making one final turn, Azurda descended and fired a barrage of fireballs at the Torna group. T-elos was able to protect Malos and Sever from harm with her ether barrier, but they were pushed backward from the impact. Julius, on the other hand, simply cut through any fireballs that drew near him. However, he and his allies were blinded by a smoke cloud that covered most of the ship's deck.

"Xander!" Azurda cried out as he got closer to the bigger group. "Get on! Hurry!"

"Got it! Everyone, get on Azurda! We're getting out of here!"

"Right!" the others acknowledged before they all hurried towards the edge of the ship.

Nia and Ethan were riding Dromarch, while the others were on foot. They all jumped off, descending towards the Cloud Sea, only for Azurda to swoop up and pick them all up on his back.

"We're going!" he cried out as he began flying away from the ancient ship. "Hold on tight!"

Meanwhile the smoke cloud cleared up around Torna, allowing them to see the Aegis and her allies making their escape.

"Stop them!" Malos ordered frantically. "Open fire!"

The Monoceros obeyed the second-in-command and began firing javelins, which had a longer range than the missiles, at the fleeing Titan from its remaining cannons. Some of the javelins managed to hit their mark, causing Azurda to cry out in pain, but he pushed through, determined to get his team to safety. Meanwhile Klaus chose to use this opportunity to get away himself, submerging the Galahad beneath the Cloud Sea and firing the engines at full throttle.

"Turn her around!" Malos continued. "Ready the ether cannon!"

"It's no use," T-elos said bitterly. "They're out of range. Those maggots just slipped through our fingers."

Malos slammed his fists together in frustration. "Damn it. We were so close to getting the Aegis too." He glanced over at their leader. "What should we do?"

Julius was lost in thought as he remembered where he had seen that silver-haired Driver before. Even after all these years, that boy still bore some resemblance to _her_. It didn't matter though. If he chose to stand in their way of their goal, then Julius will cut him down as well. But not today.

"We're turning around," he decided.

"What?" T-elos questioned. "We aren't going to pursue them."

"No. The Aegis is awake. That's enough for now. I'll have Akhos track them down."

Julius turned around and began making his way back to the Monoceros, while Malos and T-elos kept staring in the direction the Titan had fled towards.

"I wasn't able to pulverize Kos-Mos," the Dark Blade said in frustration.

"You'll get another chance, T-elos," Malos replied. "You two are fated to battle after all." He turned towards the Monoceros, but did one final glance towards the Titan. "Catch you later, _partner_."

**To be continued**

* * *

**And so Xander and the others barely managed to get away. As you can see from this chapter, Mythra is a bit more traumatized from the events of the Aegis War than in the original canon. I feel this is a fair trade since Pyra's not there (being all alone with those kinds of mental scars can't be good for your mental health). Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. See you guys next time!**


	4. A Strange Encounter

**I feel like Sakurai is giving me a sign to continue this story, BECAUSE MYTHRA JUST GOT IN SMASH! YESSSSS! Best DLC character ever! And she's releasing in my birth month, March. It's almost like a birthday present from Sakurai. THANK YOU, SAKURAI!**

**In all seriousness, sorry for taking so long with updating this story. I was so focused with Black Wolf and Dark Night that I kept putting this one on the backburner. I am fully committed with finishing this story. I'll try to do better next time. Anyway, enjoy!**

* * *

Mythra found herself on the back of a strange, but familiar, draconic Titan while under a dark and cloudy sky. It had a long neck and tail, as well as short orange wings made of ether. Above her was a massive diamond-cut blue crystal that was far bigger than her, located at the base of the creature's neck. She knew this Titan. It was Torna, the Titan she had sent to the Cloud Sea's bed five hundred years ago during the Aegis War. The very Titan were that strange group that sought to capture her seemed to have gotten their name from.

"But…how?" she questioned to herself.

Already, she could feel her grief and regret building up inside her. The memories of that terrible day were painful, so much so that she wanted to cry. It was her fault. She was responsible for the deaths of this Titan and the thousands of innocent people who were unable to escape its destruction. It was all because of this cursed power that she bore, power that she was unable to control.

She collapsed to her knees and choked out a sob, her hands covering her mouth. She wanted to disappear, to run from this pain, the pain that was overwhelming her heart. She didn't deserve to exist, not after committing such a terrible sin. In her grief, she failed to hear the sounds of two sets of footsteps approaching her from behind. A hand then touched her shoulder, causing her to jolt.

The hand belonged to a man with spiked silver hair and yellow eyes. He wore white and black armor with gold lining that exposed his shoulders, black and white armored gloves, an ornate gold fabric that was tied into his belt and draped past one leg, as well as white and gold armored boots. He had a strange crest on the collar of his armor and had a greatsword with a red-wrapped handle strapped to his back. The sword also had a crest, but it was different than the first.

The man looked at the Aegis in pity. "I'm sorry, Mythra," he said sadly. "I failed you when you needed me the most."

Mythra knew this man, his voice sounding too familiar. He was the man who first awakened her and became her first Driver. A man many would come to recall as a legendary hero.

"Addam," she said quietly, her voice sounding hoarse. Words were becoming difficult for her to form.

"Don't worry," he continued in a calm and soothing tone. "We'll make sure to seal _that_ sword away so that no one can use it to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. And I know that you'll get through this. Maybe not with me, but with someone who can share in your burden."

She wanted to believe him, she really did, but she couldn't bring herself to believe that anyone would want to hold this burden with her. The blood on her hands was thick. No person would ever want to hold them. Once again, she simply wished to disappear, to have someone else take her place as the Aegis.

The scene began to slip away, almost like a distant memory. Right before her vision went dark, Mythra glanced over her shoulder at the other figure behind her old Driver. She wasn't able to get a good look on them, but she could see their long pastel-blue hair and white outfit. She knew this person, but her memory was drawing a blank on what their name was, likely a side-effect from being asleep for five hundred years.

Darkness enveloped Mythra before she felt a gentle breeze caress her cheek. She slowly opened her eyes and found herself lying on her side on soft green grass. There were dozens of trees in the area, covering the area in comforting shadows. Her head was resting on some strange fabric, which was attached to…

"Glad to see you're awake," Xander said softly as he looked down at the Aegis. "Are you alright, Mythra?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine," she answered slowly before letting out a surprised gasp as she realized their current positions. She immediately sat up and scooted away from her Driver in a haste, putting a few feet of grass between them. He looked relatively unharmed, though his clothes looked a little ruffled. Mythra's eyes then fell to his folded legs. "W-was I in your lap this whole time?"

Xander scratched his cheek sheepishly. "Yeah," he admitted. "I woke up about an hour ago. Since you were still out of it, I decided to let you rest on something more comfortable. I hope you don't mind."

Mythra struggled not to blush at that. She had only known her Driver for such a short time and he was already treating her so kindly. Does he not know about the destruction she caused during the Aegis War? Why would he be so kind to someone he just met? It painfully reminded her of Addam, who her new Driver bore a great resemblance to save for their outfits and hairstyle, with Xander's hair being flat and slightly longer.

"Um, uh," she struggled to say, her brain moving too fast for her mouth to follow. "Thanks, I guess." She turned away from the young man and hugged her knees close to her chest. "Where are we? What happened?"

The area they were in seemed to be a swamp of sorts, with gnarled trees and mist as far as the eye could see. The air was pretty humid, making the Aegis feel slightly uncomfortable in her outfit. She could already feel her black leggings clinging to her legs. Right in front of them was a small cove that was filled with water.

"We managed to escape from Torna, I know that for sure," Xander explained. "However, things get a little hazy after that. I remember a lot of screaming and flying before I blacked out. I think we washed up on a Titan though."

"I see," Mythra acknowledged. "Where are the others? Are they safe?"

Xander sadly shook his head. "I don't know. Kos-Mos was here with us, but I sent her to go scout ahead. Hopefully she'll be back with the others."

Kos-Mos. Her Driver's other Blade. Mythra was quite surprised to see how powerful the android was, especially against T-elos of all people. The dark-skinned Blade was quite feared during the Aegis War with her destructive power. She may not be able to destroy entire Titans like Malos could, but she could easily reduce an entire town or city to rubble.

What was truly surprising though is this strange feeling of familiarity that she felt towards the android. Did they meet each other five hundred years ago during that terrible war? Her memories were drawing a blank and going to Kos-Mos wouldn't help because even if they did meet, her fellow Light Blade wouldn't remember it because Blades lose their memories the moment they return to their core crystals.

 _"Come to think of it, Jin was part of Xander's group too,"_ Mythra commented in her head. _"But why's he wearing that mask again? He shouldn't have to worry about his identity now that the Tornan Kingdom is gone."_

It was also quite shocking to see that Malos had somehow survived their terrible battle. However, if anyone could survive a crash like that, it would definitely be that man. Unfortunately, this knowledge was not helpful at all for Mythra's psyche. If there was any comfort to be found in this, it was that Malos was not fighting as he normally does. In fact, he wasn't even using half of his real power or wielding his sword. Instead, Malos just fought using the weapon of his Blade, Sever, and only bringing out his own power in short bursts if the odds turned against him.

He must not have fully recovered from their battle and was still damaged. That was the only explanation she could come up with.

"Are you okay, Mythra?" Xander suddenly spoke up, interrupting her thoughts.

The Aegis glanced over at her Driver, noticing the concerned look on his face. "Yeah," she replied. "Why wouldn't I be?"

The half-Ardainian rested his right elbow on his knee as he gazed at the cove in front of them. "Well, you looked like you were having a panic attack when you saw that Malos guy," he reasoned. "Do you know him or something? If so, what did he do that would warrant such a reaction?"

Mythra silently cursed to herself. Of course, Xander would notice her breakdown over Malos. Why wouldn't he when he was the reason she was able to somewhat snap out of it? The mere thought of her and Malos's shared past filled her with dread and fear. If she told Xander the truth, would he still want to be her Driver. Granted he wasn't given much of a choice since their resonance was rather sudden, not to mention accidental.

If he rejected her, she couldn't really blame him for it. Who wouldn't for the sin she committed? But that didn't mean it would be any less painful, doubly so because he resembled Addam so much.

"I…well…"

"If you don't want to answer, I won't force you," Xander suddenly interrupted.

Mythra let out a gasp as she gazed at her Driver in shock.

"I won't lie and say I'm not curious about your past, but I won't force you to explain something that is clearly painful to recall," he continued. He turned towards the Light Blade and gave her a light smirk. "If I did that, I'd practically be a hypocrite. I've got my own problems in my past as well. Just tell me when you feel that you're ready to do so."

She was simply floored at what she had heard. Her new Driver was actually giving her a choice to confide in him about her past. He really is a lot like Addam, not just physically, but mentally as well. It couldn't be, could it?

* * *

Marth opened his eyes and found himself standing in the middle of a strange swamp. At first he thought he was back in Alfheim Online, but this wasn't where he had logged out from. Only novices would exit ALO while on the fields with no protection since player avatars don't automatically disappear if a player leaves the game while on the field.

He looked himself over. He was definitely in his Spriggan avatar, black overcoat and hair and all. His ears were pointed as well and his trusted twin longswords, Lunara and Solaris were strapped to his back in their scabbards.

If this truly was ALO, then the developers have certainly done an impressive overhaul has the textures were extremely detailed, almost like something you'd see in the real world. There was even a modest humidity in the air, something that most VRMMOs ignore to save on processing power.

"Brother, is that you?"

Marth turned his blue eyes over and saw that he wasn't alone. On his right was a girl with waist-length emerald-green hair and amber eyes. She wore a green overcoat, white and green gloves, brown boots and green pants. Strapped to her waist was a rapier. Her ears were pointed as well, but her color scheme was that of a Sylph, another one of the nine fairy races of Alfheim.

"Thorrnn, what are you doing here?" he asked his younger sister in surprise.

"Beats me," said a different voice.

The two siblings turned and saw another Spriggan beside them. His attire was largely the same as Marth's, but his hair was flat while the former's was a little more messy. The boy's eyes were also black. Strapped to the boy's back was a black longsword and golden sword that was the Holy Sword Excalibur.

"You're here too, Kirito?"

Despite the strange circumstances, it was quite comforting to see his best friend and partner was here as well. The two of them made up the Darkness Duo, the ones who cleared the death game that was Sword Art Online and were the co-leaders of the guild called the Alfheim Warriors. Together, they had managed to pull through whatever the world had in store for them. This will be no exception.

"Yeah, wherever here is," the Black Swordsman responded as he examined the area. "I know that the terrain for ALO and the floors of New Aincrad is pretty varied, but I don't remember seeing a place like this before."

"Me neither," Thorrnn added. "I'm a veteran in ALO and I've never seen a swamp like this before. It looks and feels way too real to be something in a VRMMO."

Marth had to agree with his sister's assessment. The technology for VRMMOs was still too limited to produce something as realistic as this swamp. The computer processors would simply crash at the amount of inputs needed to achieve such a feat. The last he could recall was that he and Thorrnn were visiting their birth parents' graves as today was the "anniversary" of their deaths. A very dreary Christmas Eve.

Right when they were about to head back home, a blinding light appeared before them and swallowed them up. The next thing he knew, he was in this strange place.

There was only one way to check if this was indeed a virtual world. Marth did a motion with his left hand to bring up the main menu. All VRMMOs had to have them for players to sort out their equipment, stats and of course, log out. If no such menu appeared, then there lied the possibility that this might truly be an alternate world.

After doing the preset movement six times and seeing no menu appear, Marth repeated the process with his other hand, only to get the same result. Both Kirito and Thorrnn tried as well but no such luck.

"No way," Thorrnn said in shock. "Are we trapped in a VRMMO?"

"I don't think this is a VRMMO," Marth replied. "This place feels way too real to be a virtual world. We might be in an alternate world."

"I hate to say it, but that's looking to be the case," Kirito agreed. "There's no other explanation on what this place is. Though that raises the question. How did we get here?"

Marth didn't have any answers. How could he? Alternate worlds are usually things he would see in anime or video games. He couldn't have known that they truly existed. However, if there was a way for one to go to an alternate world, then there had to be a way to go back to their original one. That is how things usually worked in such media. The Dark Swordsman prayed that such a thing applied to real life as well.

There was still the question on how the trio ended up in the ALO avatars but it was much appreciated. If they suddenly got attacked by monsters or something, their real life selves wouldn't stand a chance. With them being in their avatars, they stood a much better chance of defending themselves.

A loud groan suddenly boomed in the air. It sounded…painful, almost like someone was hurt. Marth couldn't help but feel sorry for whatever it was, though he was concerned on what could make such a large sound and if it was friendly.

"What was that?" the blue-eyed Spriggan questioned.

"No idea," Kirito said with folded arms. "Do you think it was a creature native to this area?"

"We should go investigate," Thorrnn suddenly spoke up. "Whatever it is, it sounds like its hurt. We might be able to help it."

Both boys looked uneasy at the thought. There was no telling what kind of creature made that noise, other than it was definitely not a human. This whole place was unknown to them. Who knows what dangers lurked from within the shadows?

Unfortunately for the Darkness Duo, it was a losing argument. Whenever they came across a creature that was in danger in ALO, Thorrnn and Kirito's younger sister, Leafa, would plead with the Spriggans to save it. Much to the boys' chagrin, neither girl would take no for an answer. Sometimes it paid off, like when the quartet saved jellyfish-elephant creature, Tonky, from a four-armed giant, which allowed them to later retrieve the Holy Sword Excalibur and the Radiant Blade Solaris from the frozen fortress of Thrymheim.

"Alright," Marth said in defeat. "But let's still be careful. There could be powerful monsters in this swamp. I don't want any of us becoming their next meal."

Thorrnn smiled in triumph. "Don't worry, Brother," the Sylph said in excitement. "We're part of one of the strongest guilds in ALO. I'm sure we'll be just fine."

And with that, the trio set off towards the noise, their weapons drawn in case of a potential ambush.

* * *

Kos-Mos had returned soon after Mythra had woken up. Unfortunately the android wasn't able to locate any of the other Origo Mercenaries, much to Xander's disappointment.

"It'll be fine," Mythra spoke up in a casual tone, who seemed to have cheered up a little. "I'm sure your friends are alright. They're probably deeper in the swamp than Kos-Mos dared to go."

"I agree with Mythra," the android said in her usual emotionless tone. "It is too soon to give up on the others. Given the circumstances of our close escape with Torna, I estimate an eighty percent probability that the other Origo Mercenaries are further ahead. We should make haste to find them for maximum survivability."

Xander had to agree with his Blades. This wasn't the time to just sit around moping. This was an unknown place that he has never seen before. He might be fine since Kos-Mos is a very powerful Blade while Mythra's the Aegis, but the others might not be so lucky. There is strength in numbers so his friends needed to be found as soon as possible.

Kos-Mos mentioned that she had heard the sound of a large creature in pain to the north. Fearing the worst, Xander and the girls headed off in that direction. The swamp was rather tranquil. The insects buzzing about were annoying, but they were tiny and not much of a threat.

After a few minutes of walking in silence, they soon came a pile of fallen trees. The condition of the wood looked snapped and gnarled, almost like something large crashed into them. There was only one thing in Xander's mind that could cause such damage.

"Uncle!" he shouted in worry as he burst into a run, following the collapsed tree line.

"Wait, Xander!" Mythra exclaimed as she and the android hurried in pursuit. "Don't run off on your own."

Her words fell on deaf ears as Xander pushed through the damp ground. After what felt like an eternity, he finally reached the Titan and his heart immediately sank.

Azurda was lying limply in a small clearing surrounded by trees and shallow pools of water. He was covered in large wounds, strange metallic spears piercing various parts of his body, ranging from his neck and the way to his lower back and stomach. It was clear that he took the brunt of the Monoceros's projectiles to protect the Drivers and Blades on his back during that terrible night. The grass beneath him was practically soaked in blue liquid ether, the Titan's very blood.

"No," Xander said in dread. He hurried towards the Titan's head. "Uncle!"

While Azurda was obviously not his uncle by blood, the old Titan was very good friends with his family, at least with regards to his mother's side. When they were children, Xander and his sister once called him "Gramps" because of his age, which was around 1,200 years, but he didn't like it because it made him feel old. They meant no harm by the nickname but chose to respect the Titan's wishes, coming up with "Uncle" instead. Azurda may not fight that much, but he always acted as his family's protector. Ever since Xander left his home in Mor Ardain with Kos-Mos, the Titan always made rounds to see if he was okay. To see him with such fatal wounds was devastating to the Ardainian.

Slowly, the old Titan opened his eyes and locked eyes with the grieving Driver. "I am glad that you are uninjured, Xander," he said weakly. Even talking seemed to be too much for him as his lifeblood continued to pour out of his open wounds.

"How awful," Mythra said in sorrow, her eyes close to watering. She knew the Titan as well from the Aegis War, though their interactions were very brief. It pained her to see an old friend having sacrificed himself to ensure their escape from Malos.

Xander fell to his knees and punched the ground in frustration. He had some medicine with him, all mercenaries kept some in hand after all, but his limited supply would not be enough to save the dying Titan. Kos-Mos's Hilbert Effect Refrain did have healing properties, but even she couldn't heal wounds as grave as Azurda's. If only Nia was here. Her Healing Arts were especially potent, more so than any other Driver. Why that was the case was unknown to the Aegis Driver, but he didn't care, especially right now. She might be the only one who can save his uncle.

"Kos-Mos!" he called out in desperation. "We need to find Nia. We don't have much time."

"Understood," the android acknowledged. "But I estimate a five percent chance that Azurda will—"

"Don't tell me the odds! I won't let Uncle die. I can't lose him after losing my mother. I can't!"

Both the android and Mythra were surprised by the boy's tone, more so for Mythra.

Surprisingly, it was Azurda was spoke up. "I am grateful for your concern, Xander, but I fear that it is too late for me," the Titan said gravely. "At least I fulfilled my promise with Ceres. She would be proud to see the man that you have become."

The mere mention of his deceased mother caused Xander to lose whatever composure he had left and began wallowing in grief. As if on instinct, Kos-Mos went over to her master, got on her knees, and pulled him close to her chest. Such an action was practically ingrained within her very being over the long six years since they fled their old home. During the first three, her Driver was often plagued with terrible nightmares of his mother's death, causing him to awake with a fright late into the night. Because of this, Kos-Mos sought to comfort her master whenever he was distraught. It brought her a strange foreign pain in her chest to see him in such a state, so she made it her objective to comfort him whenever Xander became distraught.

"It's alright, Master," she said slowly, trying her best to sound soothing but still sounding robotic. "I'm still here. I won't let anything happen to you."

Mythra found herself feeling slightly jealous at the sight, but felt that the android was the better fit to calm their Driver. She recalled Xander mentioning that his past wasn't cheerful as well. She was curious to learn more about it, but now wasn't the time.

"Well this is awkward," a new voice spoke up.

Mythra let out a gasp before she summoned her Aegis Sword out of instinct. She hastily turned around and took on a fighting stance, ready to defend her grieving Driver.

Directly behind her were three humans, two boys and one girl, who all looked to be in their late teens. The boys both had black hair and wore black clothes, the only difference being their eye color, with the first having sapphire-blue eyes and the other raven-black. The girl was dressed in green and had waist-length hair of the same color. Her eyes were an amber gold. One common trait among the trio were their pointed ears, a trait seen among Urayans but they were fair-skinned rather than the usual darker complexion.

"Who are you?" Mythra demanded in an aggressive tone, eyeing their drawn weapons. "You better not be here to fight, because if you are, you'll soon regret it."

The boy with black eyes slowly sheathed his swords and raised his hands defensively. "It's alright," he said calmly. "We're not here to fight. My name's Kirito. These are my friends, Marth and Thorrnn. We heard a loud groan nearby so we decided to investigate."

The girl, Thorrnn, hurried over to the Titan and examined his injuries. "His wounds are really severe, but I might be able to close them," she said quickly. "I'm not as good as Asuna, but I can certainly try."

The green-haired girl closed her eyes and stretched out her hands towards Azurda. She then began chanting in a language unknown to the Alrestians. A green symbol appeared before her. The symbol of the Sylphs.

A warm white light bathed over the Titan, who was already starting to dissolve into ether.

"It's too late, Sister," Marth advised, though he did seem saddened despite not knowing the situation. "I don't think you can save it."

Thorrnn, however, gritted her teeth tightly and poured more energy into her healing spell. "I don't care," she exclaimed. "Whoever this guy is, he clearly means a lot to these people. I have to save him no matter what. Do you want them to go through what _we_ went through?"

Marth let out a grunt before looking away, sorrow filling his eyes. Mythra didn't know what the greenette meant, but it was clear that the new arrivals had their own traumas. Also it was surprising that Marth and Thorrnn were siblings despite barely having any resemblances with each other.

Returning her gaze to the greenette, both Mythra and Kos-Mos noticed a strange aura surround the girl. Whatever she was doing wasn't a Healing Art nor a Blade ability. The energy coming off her felt very different, almost ancient. The Aegis found herself looking at Thorrnn's shadow and nearly gasped as she saw that bat-like wings had sprung up from the shadow's back.

 _"What the?"_ Mythra thought in shock. _"Who is this girl?"_

In the end, however, Azurda ended up dissolving completely into blue ether particles. His condition must have been too severe for Thorrnn to save his life. As the ether particles dissolved into the air, the Sylph turned towards the half-Ardainian in sorrow.

"I'm really sorry," she said grimly, her eyes looking watery, as if she was struggling to hold back the tears. "I thought I could save your friend."

Xander, who had finally managed to recollect himself, simply shook his head before wiping his remaining tears with his sleeve. "It's fine," he replied slowly. "At least you managed to make his death less painful. Thank you for that."

A moment of silence was shared among the group, as if they were sharing a period of mourning for the deceased Titan.

"Why are you all looking so depressed?" asked a familiar voice. "I'm not dead."

The group turned towards the voice's direction where they noticed a small figure emerge from the blue light. The creature barely reached halfway towards Mythra's lower leg. It was covered in white fur, had small pink wings and ears, a white furry tail, as well as a tiny horn in the center of its forehead. Right in the center of its chest was a blue diamond-shaped crystal. It strangely resembled…

"Uncle?!" Xander shouted in disbelief.

"Uh, is that normal for creatures like that?" Marth asked nervously.

"No, this is the first incident I have witnessed where a dying Titan reverted to a larval state to heal itself," Kos-Mos explained in a monotone voice as she and her Driver stood back up.

The little Azurda puffed its chest out with pride. "Kos-Mos is exactly right. Some Titans like myself can maximize cellular regeneration to maintain bodily function, though it does tend to revert us to a larval state," he explained. He then turned his head towards Thorrnn. "I didn't think I would be able to do it in time but whatever this girl did managed to keep my body alive long enough for the regeneration to begin. You have my thanks, Thorrnn."

The Sylph, rightfully confused, simply nodded her head. "You're very welcome," she said with a smile.

"Is anyone confused on what just happened?" Kirito spoke up.

"Join the club," Mythra said, her arms folded across her chest. "I'm almost afraid to ask, but how long will it take for you to return to your old self, Azurda?"

The Titan held its chin as it pondered for a moment. "Let's see…no more than 300 years or so."

The Aegis figured as much. That meant that Xander and his fellow Drivers would be long dead before Azurda is back to his normal size. That was disappointing but there was nothing they could do to speed up the aging process.

"Guess that means that we'll have to rely on the Galahad or other ships if we want to travel to the other nations," Xander spoke up.

"It seems so. You're not angry, are you, Xander?"

The silver-haired Driver looked rather embarrassed and scratched his head sheepishly. It looked kind of adorable to Mythra. "N-no," her Driver stuttered. "But I'm glad you're alright, Uncle."

Azurda gave his nephew a thumb's up and a youthful smile.

* * *

The two groups reintroduced themselves and began explaining the situation on how they ended up in this swamp. They soon learned that they were from different worlds that had different cultures and lands. Needless to say, it was quite the surprise for both parties.

"I see," Xander said with interest, Azurda hovering by his left shoulder. "So you three are from a world called Earth and the nation you three live in is Japan."

"Pretty much," Marth replied, right arm resting on his waist. "We don't live on Titans like you do. Our land is made of solid rock. So how did you guys end up here?"

"I might know the answer," Azurda said. "You see, our group were fleeing from some bad organization called Torna, which is how I got my wounds. I was desperate to find a safe place for Xander and the others that I just kept flying, despite my injuries. Right when I was beginning to lose hope of ever finding dry land, a strange rift appeared before me and I got sucked in. I think you all know the rest."

"Yeah," Kirito acknowledged. "You guys crashed and got separated from the others. A similar thing happened to us, though we were at different places. This strange burst of light came out of nowhere and the next thing we knew, we were here, wherever here is anyway."

"How strange," Mythra commented. She took a quick analysis of the immediate area. There wasn't any ether in the atmosphere, instead it was a strange power, similar to the one that had come off from Thorrnn when she was trying to heal Azurda. It honestly made her uneasy. "It can't be a coincidence that we were all brought here. Our friends are still missing and I have a hunch that some of your friends may be here too."

Kos-Mos nodded her head in agreement. "I concur. If Marth, Thorrnn and Kirito were brought to this place, then there is a ninety percent probability that other members of the Alfheim Warriors are here as well," the android said matter-of-factly. "Master, I recommend that we all cooperate to locate our comrades and find a way back to our worlds."

"Took the words right out of my mouth." Xander locked eyes with the Dark Swordsman, who stared back in relative silence. "We're both here under mysterious circumstances. We don't know the lay of the land and we've got missing teammates. Let's work together on a shared goal." He then reached his hand towards the blue-eyed Spriggan.

Marth was silent for a moment. In a single movement, he swung his swords before returning them to their sheaths. He then accepted the Driver's hand with his own.

"Indeed," the Dark Swordsman replied. "We both have people to protect here. Let us combine our strength and escape this place together."

And with that, the union between the Alfheim Warriors and the Origo Mercenaries was made. Together, they all vowed that they would survive this strange world and find out why they were brought here. Nothing would stand in the way of their joined mission, not even a god.

**To be continued**

* * *

**And so the revised Temporal Island arc begins. I was thinking of doing this arc later, but this felt like a good place to get it out of the way, though I don't know how long it will be. For those who haven't read my Dark Swordsman stories, I don't feel it to be necessary to read them to understand this arc. I will do my best to give you all full context on certain situations regarding the SAO cast so that you don't have go read something else to understand what is going on. If you have read my Dark Swordsman stories, then don't expect this version of the arc to go about in the same way as it did in Dark Swordsman 2. I am rewriting this arc from the ground up to fit the new context of the Dark Swordsman world and removing some things (like Dragon Soul no longer existing, because good God, WHY DID I THINK THAT WAS A GOOD IDEA?! Wolf Heart still exists though do expect some retcons revolving that). With all that out of the way, I'll see you guys next time!**


	5. Reunions

Jin was in the middle of a battle with strange creatures he had never seen before. These monsters resembled lizards, only they were much larger, almost the size of Dromarch. Their scales were a deep green, likely to help them blend in with the environment, and were exceptionally thick. Their teeth and claws were razor-sharp, perfectly capable of rending flesh and armor.

There were about four of them in total, but there could still be more lurking about, waiting for their chance to strike. Jin tightened his grip on his nodachi, steeling himself for battle. He had to break through so he could find his friends, but these lizards were making that very hard to do.

One lizard lunged its fangs at the masked swordsman, wanting to take a chunk out of his right leg, but Jin swiftly evaded it. He then countered with a powerful downward slash at the creature's neck. The lizard screeched in pain as blood poured from the open wound, however the cut was not very deep thanks to its deep hide.

This whole encounter was nothing more than a game of cat and mouse. The lizards made sure to keep the swordsman on his toes and rarely attacked in a consistent manner. Sometimes just one would attack, other times two would attack. There were even instances where one would act as a decoy for the others to get a free hit. Such coordination from cold-blooded beasts was unheard of to the mercenary.

Jin knew he was in trouble as while his wounds were minor thanks to his quick reflexes, eventually the monsters will wear him out enough to go in for the killing blow if nothing changed. There was no other choice. He had to use _that_ power again. It was the only way to ensure his survival.

 _"At least the others aren't here to see it,"_ he thought to himself as he gathered his resolve. _"If I showed them what I can really do, they'll instantly know I'm not what I say I am."_

The monsters circled around the swordsman, each of them snarling at their prey. They were anticipating their victory, but Jin was about to give them a rude awakening.

The air suddenly grew cold as a white mist enveloped the immediate area. The lizards movements came to a halt, wary of the sudden chill that wasn't there moments before. That brief pause was just the opening Jin needed to turn this around.

He leapt upward and brought his open left hand close to his face, eyes locked on his targets. He channeled his energy into the air, condensing it, freezing it. As he did so, a silver aura surrounded his body. In a matter of seconds, dozens of icicles appeared before him, their jagged tips all pointed towards the large lizards. Jin swung his hand down, launching the icicles at the beasts at high-speed. The lizards were barely able to even make a sound before they were all impaled by the crystalline spears. By the time the mercenary's feet touched the ground, they were all dead, their vital organs destroyed by his ice.

Seeing that the danger had passed, Jin let out a tired sigh. Are all the creatures in this strange place this strong? He found himself worried even more about the other Origo Mercenaries. He had to find them as soon as possible so they could get out of here. This land was not a kind place at all.

"Gaaah!"

Jin stood at alert. That was a female voice, one that was in pain. He didn't recognize it, but whoever it was, she was in trouble. He sprinted in the direction the scream came from, jumping over multiple gnarled tree roots and puddles of water as he did so. After what felt like an eternity, he finally reached a small clearing where he saw four individuals surrounded by a pack of large wolf-like creatures. The wolves looked just as ferocious as the lizards, only they had brown fur.

The first individual was a young man, likely in his mid-twenties, with messy red hair held up by a black bandana. His outfit consisted of a strange red and blue coat, a black undershirt, a leather chestguard held up with a white cloth, black fingerless gloves, and white pants tucked into black boots. He also had a slight beard on his cheeks and chin. In his hands was a gray katana with a black hilt.

The man was fighting like a crazed berserker, desperately trying to keep the beasts away from the girl behind him. The girl in question looked a lot younger than him, maybe around seventeen at the most. She had beautiful long purple hair that fell to her waist and deep red eyes. She wore obsidian chest armor, a long-sleeved bluebottle violet tunic which showed part of her sides, as well as her shoulders, purple fingerless gloves, a windswept shirt that went a little bit past her thighs and parted on her right leg of the same color, and purple high heeled boots that went all the way up to her knees. In her right hand was a one-handed double-edged purple sword, the blade looking as skinny as Jin's nodachi.

The girl had a nasty bite mark on her left leg, which was bleeding profusely. One of the wolves must have made it. The wound had rendered the girl immobile, lying helplessly in the grass. She was struggling to get back on her feet, wanting to help her protector fight off the beasts.

"Stop moving, girl! You're only making it worse," a familiar voice said frantically.

Jin quickly looked past the redhead swordsman even more to see a familiar Gormotti kneeling beside the injured girl, a twin ring held above the bloody leg and showering it with ether energy. Right behind the Gormotti was a certain armored white tiger wielding another twin ring in his mouth, doing its best to keep the wolves away from the girls.

"Nia! Dromarch!" Jin cried out in worry.

He burst into a run, cutting down any beasts that dared to halt his advance. One wolf had managed to slip past the red swordsman and readied to pounce on the purplette only to be killed by a downward stab from the masked swordsman's nodachi, piercing the small of its back and severing its heart.

Jin wordlessly yanked his sword free, causing the wolf to fall limply on the ground, and turned his back towards the girls, his eyes focused on the other monsters.

"Who the hell are you?!" the red swordsman demanded as he held back another wolf's jaws with his katana.

Nia let out a gasp in relief when she saw the white-haired man before her. "Jin! Thank goodness you're here. We're in serious trouble."

"I can see that," the male mercenary replied as he got into a fighting stance. "You focus on healing your new friend. I'll take care of the other beasts."

"On it. Be careful though. These things are tougher than they look."

Thanks to Jin's sudden arrival, the group was able to fend off the beasts long enough that the wolves decided to retreat to find easier prey. Nia was able to heal the other girl's leg to the point that there wasn't even a mark left over. The Gormotti was truly skilled with Healing Arts, a little too good for a regular Driver. The only female Driver of the Origo Mercenaries was definitely hard to read, even for Jin. She seemed fond of her comrades, yet always kept them at arms-length. Her very presence felt different from other humans.

"Thanks for the help," the redhead spoke up as Nia and Dromarch healed their wounds. The whole group took a seat to rest, but still kept a vigil in case more enemies showed up. "Your name's Jin, right? I'm Klein and this is Yuuki. Do you have any idea where we are?"

"A pleasure to meet you, Klein," the masked swordsman said formally. "And no, I'm afraid I don't know where we are. I don't recognize this place at all. We might be on an undiscovered Titan."

Yuuki cocked her head to one side, her eyes looking confused. "Uh, what do Titans have to do with this?" she asked obliviously. "Aren't they made up or something?"

It was then that Jin and his friends learned that Klein and Yuuki weren't from Alrest but from a world called Earth, which had its own nations and cultures. They also learned that Titans don't exist on Earth and instead the continents were all made of solid rock. They then shared information to try to make sense of their situation.

"I see," the white-haired swordsman mused. "So you two were celebrating your victory on clearing some floor in this New Aincrad with some of your friends when this strange light suddenly appeared and swallowed you both up."

"Yep," Klein replied as he scratched the back of his head. "The next thing we knew, we were here in this swamp. We ran into Nia and Dromarch soon after and then we got attacked by those wolves."

Yuuki gently rubbed the spot on her leg where the bite mark was, as if trying to soothe any phantom pain she might be having. "Those things are strong. Their attack patterns are nothing like the mobs we fight in Alfheim," she said quietly, as if to try calming herself. "I guess there's a big difference between fighting something that has a limited attack algorithm to a living and breathing monster. I got hurt because I was too careless. One slip-up here and you can really lose your life here."

"Don't say things like that," Nia chided. "No one's going to die here. Not if Dromarch and I have anything to say about it. If anyone gets injured, we'll patch you up real quick."

"Indeed," the white tiger added. "My lady and I will do all that we can to keep everyone in fighting shape."

Jin took a quick look around the area. There weren't any signs of the wolves coming back, but that still didn't give him cause to relax. This place is increasingly proving that it was very hostile. They were too exposed out here. Monsters could easily surround them and block any possible escape routes. They'll have no choice but to brave the dangers of the swamp. Not only would the trees provide them with some decent cover, but it was also the only way they can locate the others.

"Hey Jin," Klein spoke up, interrupting the mercenary's thoughts. "Since we're all stuck here with no explanation and have missing teammates, how about we work together? It couldn't hurt, right?"

"That would be the smarter decision. There is strength in numbers after all."

Despite having only just met them, Jin felt that he could trust the Salamander and Imp, something he couldn't say with most of his meetings with strangers. The two humans reminded him a lot of his friends in the Origo Mercenaries. He prayed to the Architect that the others were safe.

A loud howl suddenly filled the air. The wolves must be regrouping for another attack. This clearing was no longer safe. After doing a quick check on everyone's conditions, he recommended that they needed to leave now before the beasts return. No one argued otherwise.

Together they got up and set off to find their missing teammates.

* * *

Xander had finished beheading yet another giant lizard with the Aegis Sword. He and the co-leaders of the Alfheim Warriors, Marth and Kirito, all agreed that they should find a way out of this swamp. Not only would it allow them to get their bearings and potentially learn where they were, but it might help them reunite with their friends.

Unfortunately, said task was easier said than done. Not only was the swamp incredibly dark due to the dense tree line blocking the light from above, but everything also looked the same, making it near impossible to navigate. To make matters even worse, monster attacks were rather frequent. The beasts came in a variety of appearances, ranging from lizards, wolves, to even massive snakes and bear-like creatures.

While these constant attacks were rather annoying, they did serve as decent practice for Xander to get a better handle for Mythra's power. She was easily on par with Kos-Mos, though that shouldn't really be much of a surprise since she is the legendary Aegis. Her Foresight definitely came in handy with dealing with these fiends as he has never dealt with monsters this strong before.

Xander turned his gaze towards the Darkness Duo, who were fighting a black bear with strange red markings that seemed to glow in the dark. It was easily twice their size, and yet it could hardly touch them. Both dual-wielders were simply too fast and their teamwork was flawless.

One would rush in to deflect a claw attack with a Sword Skill, giving the other the opening to strike while the creature was defenseless with yet another Sword Skill. However, Sword Skills apparently causes their users to become rigid for a few seconds after the attack concluded and they were impossible to cancel mid-activation. The movements were all preregistered so once the skill is activated the trio from Alfheim were committed to performing all the attacks in their entirety, no exceptions. The rigidness obviously left them vulnerable to enemy counterattacks too, however the trio always made sure that one of them would protect them by judging when it was the right time to use a Sword Skill. It was honestly quite impressive.

The bear's breathing was getting ragged, its body completely covered in wounds. It was a miracle the thing was still standing even from all the blood it had lost. It had taken multiple slashes, burned by Thorrnn's fire, electrocuted by Marth's lightning, and blasted with Kirito's dark magic, and yet it was still determined to keep fighting.

"Good grief," Marth complained as he blocked its claw attack with a barrier of black wind, the wind-defense spell Stormveil. "This thing just won't go down."

Xander could spot traces of sweat on the Dark Swordsman's brow. The blue-eyed Spriggan had been using a lot of his wind and lightning magic to help fight off the monsters. Apparently in Alfheim, magic or mana had some kind of bar that the user could tap into to cast spells, whatever that meant. In real life though, such a thing didn't exist which meant that the spells needed something else in order to be unleashed. The player's own energy, or mana as Thorrnn liked to put it.

Speaking of which, the Sylph looked equally as drained as her brother. Not only had she been using her fire spells to attack the beasts from a distance, but she also acted as the group's healer by casting healing spells whenever someone got injured. The only one who wasn't as tired was Kirito, and that was because he was rather infrequent with his spell use. Apparently he preferred to rely on his swords to take down his enemies rather than blast them with magic, also it was a pain to learn and say the proper incantations for the spells. He only began practicing dark magic recently, at that was because Marth and Leafa had spent weeks trying to convince him to at least try so that he'd have more versatility in combat. Because of this, Kirito was nowhere near as good at magic than his two comrades, who apparently have become so skilled with certain spells that they can cast them without saying the proper incantation for them.

"No kidding," Kirito said in frustration as he and Thorrnn slashed at the bear's sides while it was distracted. "It's like a freaking tank. It just keeps absorbing our attacks like they're nothing and keeps fighting. I'm just glad it doesn't have a healer otherwise this'll never end."

"Don't jinx us, Kirito," Thorrnn said warily, holding her rapier in a defensive manner. "The monsters here are like nothing we've ever seen before. I'd rather we not make things worse for us by tempting fate."

Marth suddenly intensified the black gale around him, knocking the bear backwards. While it was off-balance, Thorrnn blasted it with a stream of crimson fire from her left hand, the flames colliding with the beast's chest. The bear groaned in pain as its black fur was burned off. Once the flames parted, Kirito rushed in and activated the Dual Blades Sword Skill, Double Circular. He began with a downward slash with his right sword, cutting into the bear's chest before spinning around and concluding the combo with a horizontal slash with his left sword. The Holy Sword Excalibur cut through the beast's lower chest, likely hitting several major organs in the process.

At last, the behemoth bear collapsed on the ground, its lifeblood wetting the grass below it. It let out one final, weak cry before finally succumbing to its wounds, never moving again.

Thorrnn then approached the proud beast's corpse and knelt beside its head, not caring that its blood was staining her clothes. She brushed her hand against its head, feeling its messy, yet soft fur.

"I'm so sorry," she said in sorrow, her eyes already beginning to water. "May you rest in peace after fighting for so long."

Kirito eyed the Sylph strangely as he swung the blood off his swords before sheathing them. "Don't tell me you seriously feel sorry for that thing?" the Spriggan questioned. "That thing tried to kill us."

If looks could kill, the Black Swordsman would definitely be dead from the dagger-like glare Thorrnn gave him. "After we intruded in its territory!" she argued loudly. "This creature isn't a pile of algorithms. It was a living being. Has SAO made you so coldhearted that you can shrug off with killing a living creature?"

Both Spriggans looked as if her words had hurt them deeply as neither one dared to face the greenette. There was still much Xander didn't know about his new friends, but one thing was clear about them. With the way Marth and Kirito have been carrying themselves throughout this whole ordeal, they have been in situations where their very lives were at risk, where a single mistake would cost them everything that they held dear.

Thorrnn, however, was not. She had never been in battles where she could really die if she was not careful. It was weighing heavily on her mind, giving her doubts.

Xander could understand her plight. He went through the same thing when he first became a mercenary. He too questioned if killing monsters in their homes was truly the right thing to do, but in the end, he pushed past it. He had to in order to survive, not just for himself, but for Kos-Mos, and for the family he had left behind.

He walked over to the girl and rested his hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up at him. "You did what you had too to survive," he said in sympathy. "No one can blame you for that. You need to be strong, Thorrnn, for the sake of your friends and your brother. They're prepared to do what it takes to protect you. Can you do the same for them?"

The Sylph was silent for a few moments as she kept staring at his golden eyes. After a while, she finally nodded her head. "I will," she replied, her voice gaining more confidence. "I'll use all my strength to protect my brother and my friends. I won't let anyone take them from me."

Xander gave her a warm smile as he helped her back up. He then turned towards his Blades, when he noticed that Mythra had a small smile on her face. Azurda was there as well, hovering with his small wings. "What is it?" he asked curiously while Thorrnn returned to her brother's side.

"Oh nothing," the Aegis passed off. "Just reminiscing on the past. Anyway, I think Thorrnn will be alright now. She's a lot stronger than she looks."

"I concur," Kos-Mos added. "The flames she produces seem to only be a shadow of what they are truly capable of. The same applies to Marth's wind and lightning magic as well as Kirito's dark magic and his sword techniques. They all seem to have the potential to become extremely powerful."

Interesting. Xander couldn't help but wonder what the trio would be like once they achieved their true potential. There was no denying that it would be quite the sight.

"Master, there is light coming from the west," the android explained in her usual manner. "I calculate that we are nearly out of this swamp. Once we are past the tree line, we may be able to get a better idea of where we are and the locations of the other Origo Mercenaries."

Mythra let out a groan as she brushed the mud that had been accumulating on her short dress. Actually all of their outfits were somewhat dirty from all the walking and fighting they have done. "Thank the Architect," she said in irritation. "I was beginning to think this swamp just went on forever. I could go for a shower right now. Some food and clean water would be nice too."

"I think we all can say that, Mythra," Azurda spoke up. "We still need to be careful though. There's no telling what else could be lurking here."

"Azurda's right," Xander agreed. "We're not out of danger yet. We need to find a town or something to try and get some information on where we are. This definitely isn't Alrest and from what Marth says, it's not Earth either. We're in completely unknown territory."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Mythra said nonchalantly as she folded her arms. "If we get into any trouble, just let me handle it. I am an Aegis after all."

Surprisingly, Kos-Mos turned her head towards her fellow Light Blade and said, "I am perfectly capable of protecting my master on my own. I do not require your assistance, Mythra."

"What was that?! I dare you to say that again!"

Xander let out a groan as he pinched the bridge of his nose. He should have expected this would happen eventually. Kos-Mos was always very protective of him, that was the mission she created for herself after all. It was quite crucial back when it was just the two of them, but now they had their friends and even the Aegis herself. The android could loosen up at least a little.

"Knock it off, Kos-Mos," he chided his longtime partner. "I'm Mythra's Driver now, so that means she'll be tagging along with us from now on. You've seen her in action. She's more than capable of pulling her own weight. Besides, it wouldn't it be better if you had another partner you can rely on?"

The android then turned her attention to her Driver. "Your logic is sound, Master, but protecting you is my main objective," she refuted in a coldly calm manner. "I cannot prioritize anything above that."

Mythra suddenly cracked a wicked smirk. "Oh really?" she challenged as she glared knowingly at the blunette. "It sounds to me like you're jealous that Xander has another Blade he can rely on. You worried that I'm going to replace you, Kos-Mos?"

"Your statement is flawed. I cannot feel this jealousy you speak of nor fear that my master will replace me. I have protected him for over eight years and will continue to do so. There is no need for you to worry about my master's safety as long as I am by his side. I will not allow anyone to harm him."

The Aegis simply looked away, her smirk not fading. "Yep, totally jealous," she said simply. "This might be more fun than I thought."

"I am not jealous!" Kos-Mos declared with an unusual burst of emotion.

"Enough!" Xander shouted with authority, getting everyone's attention. "If we're going to escape this place, I'm going to need both of you to help. Can I ask you two to please cooperate with each other?"

The two Blades fell silent and locked eyes with each other. After a few moments of silence, they turned their gazes towards their Driver.

"Fine, I'll rein it in until we get out of here," Mythra said in defeat. "As long as Kos-Mos doesn't slow me down, I'll work with her."

"If those are your orders, Master, then I will obey," Kos-Mos added. "I will…share the responsibility of my mission with the Aegis."

Xander simply groaned in exhaustion. Even though the android was always very protective of him over the long years, he had never seen this side of her, one that was unwilling to cooperate with someone who's strength rivaled her own. He prayed to the Architect that the two Blades can put aside their differences and work together.

They all began marching to the west, towards where Kos-Mos had seen light from out of the tree line. No monsters attacked them again. They must truly be almost out.

"Trouble in paradise?"

Xander let out a gasp and turned to see Marth looking at him in concern.

"What do you mean?" the half-Ardainian questioned.

"Well you kinda snapped at Mythra and Kos-Mos just now. Was there a problem or something?"

"No, Kos-Mos was just being…well…Kos-Mos. While it's normal for her to be protective of me, I've never seen her act that way before. I would have thought she'd be more than willing to work with Mythra since I'm both their Drivers."

"I see," the Spriggan mused with interest. "Well from what you told me, Kos-Mos has been with you longer, so her attitude kinda makes sense. She probably feels threatened that you now have another Blade. Do Drivers tend to have only one Blade?"

Xander nodded his head. "Somewhat, yeah. While there are plenty of core crystals out there, Drivers usually only stick with one Blade unless they really need the extra support. It's not uncommon for a Driver to have multiple Blades because it gives them more versatility, it's just not something you see nowadays."

"That's a shame. There's nothing wrong with a little variety. It helps make you less predictable. Anyway, I'm sure Kos-Mos will get over it eventually. Once you build a repour with Mythra, she'll have to acknowledge her as another partner."

The silver-haired Driver let out an amused chuckle. "I hope you're right, Marth. I hope you're right."

After a few minutes of relatively peaceful walking, the group finally reached the end of the tree line. Once there, they came across a large, beautiful lake. The crystal-clear water was perfectly still, the light of the setting sun filling it with multiple shades of color. Such a marvelous sight rivalled that of the prettiest gemstones.

"Wow," Kirito said with a whistle. "Don't see that every day."

"Indeed," Azurda agreed. "But it would seem that we were in that swamp longer than we thought. It's already evening."

"No kidding," Marth added, arms crossed along his chest. "And how much do you want to bet that the monsters here get a lot more active at night?"

"I would estimate that the creatures in this area become active at night by about seventy percent," Kos-Mos stated matter-of-factly. "It would be wise for us to seek shelter."

Xander had to agree with the android. While he didn't mind camping out, it was simply too risky here. There had to be a town nearby that they could stay in. Hopefully they don't have a different currency here. But they still had to find the rest of the Origo Mercenaries and Alfheim Warriors. There wasn't much time left before it will be dark.

"Xander! Kos-Mos!"

"Marth! Kirito! Thorrnn!"

The group turned to their left and saw none other than Jin, Nia, Dromarch, Ethan, Poppi, and four people Xander didn't recognize. The first was a purple-haired girl who looked seventeen, a red-haired man in his mid-twenties, an eighteen-year-old girl with long aqua-blue hair and dressed in blue and white with a rapier strapped to her waist, and finally a sixteen-year-old girl with pale blue hair and wearing a green coat with white chest armor, a black choker and fingerless gloves, as well as black short shorts and boots. The final girl also had a silver bow strapped to her back with its quiver attached to the back of her waist.

"Nia! Jin! Ethan! Poppi! Dromarch!" Xander called out in relief, waving to his friends.

"No way," Marth said in disbelief. "Yuuki? Klein?"

"Asuna and Sinon are here too," Thorrnn added.

Once the two groups converged, they shared introductions and exchanged information. The other Origo Mercenaries were shocked to learn that Azurda had reverted to a larval stage as a result of the wounds he got from their escape from Torna. However, they were relieved that he was still alive. Now they were only missing one member, and that was Klaus, who was aboard the Galahad when Torna attacked.

As for the Alfheim Warriors, it became quite clear that Marth and Yuuki were in a relationship, as were Kirito and Asuna, due to the affection they displayed upon their reunion. While there were other members of the guild still unaccounted for, Kirito revealed that it was only the five of them who were present when that mysterious light appeared. Marth and Thorrnn may have been at a different location and were still dragged in as well, but the Black Swordsman theorized that the siblings might have been the exception. If the other guildmembers were here, then they would have escaped the swamp as well.

"I'm guessing none of us know where we are," Ethan spoke up.

"Nope," Klein answered as he rested his katana against his shoulders while it was in its scabbard. "We're as clueless as you guys."

"I'm just glad that we're in our game avatars," Sinon added. "Although it is strange that I am missing my cat ears and tail. It's a little weird."

"A little," Marth agreed. "But minor. Anyway, we need to find shelter for the night. Anyone got any ideas?"

"Well we could try to find a town or something," Nia suggested. "There's no way in hell that I am sleeping out here in the wilderness, not with these strange beasts lurking about."

Xander held his chin as he thought about it. He actually had the same idea as the Gormotti but there were no clues on where to look, much less if a town even existed in this world. He quickly voiced his concerns with the rest of the group.

"Well I could try flying up and see if there's any towns nearby," Marth casually offered.

"Wait, you can fly?!" Xander exclaimed in surprise. "Why didn't you do that before?! We could've have gotten out of that swamp in half the time that way."

"Technically all of the Alfheim Warriors can fly, we play as fairies after all," the Dark Swordsman clarified. "As for why we didn't try earlier, it's because we need natural light, be it from the Sun or Moon, in order to fly. While there was some sunlight breaking through the trees, it was way too cluttered to risk flying through. There shouldn't be any problems know that we're out in the open."

Kirito nodded his head in agreement. "Then it's settled. Marth, go and scout ahead. With your mastery over wind and lightning, you're practically at home in the sky."

"Just be careful up there," Yuuki added. "There could be some aerial monsters around that even you would have trouble with."

Marth simply cracked a light smirk. "I'll be fine, Yuuki. If I get attacked by something I can't handle, I'll just fly away. I am one of the fastest fliers in the guild after all."

The other fairies still looked concerned for the Spriggan, Thorrnn especially. After reassuring them that he'll be alright once more, Marth summoned two pairs of black, translucent insectoid wings on his back. The wings gave off countless sparkles of light. Right in the top center of the wings was a black crest, the symbol of the Spriggans.

Marth then kicked off into the sky and flew as far as he dared, keeping a close vigil for any monsters. He soon halted his ascent and looked down at the land below. Much to his surprise, the whole world was simply chunk of rock floating about in nothingness.

Yeah, it looks like getting back home may be harder than he initially thought. On the bright side, he did manage to spot some towns in the distance, one of which happened to be in good walking distance from the lake the others were at. However, his attention was soon drawn to a strange city surrounded by pale stone walls. Marth couldn't get a good look at it because it was too far away, but for some reason it felt familiar to him.

His heart began to ache, as if it knew something he didn't. It didn't make any sense to the Spriggan. He had no memory of this place, nor that city, yet why does it feel so familiar? Why does he feel sad?

Marth pushed the thought aside and descended back towards the others.

"There's a town about a few miles to the north," he said the moment his feet touched the ground. "If we hurry, we should be able to get there before dark."

Mythra let out a groan. "Sounds like a pain, but we don't really have any options," the Aegis replied. "Let's get moving. We've got a lot of ground to cover if we want to sleep somewhere with actual walls."

The others voiced their agreement and began making their way to the town that Marth recommended. Hopefully they can not only get some much-needed rest there, but also some answers on how they ended up on this floating island.

* * *

Klaus was at the helm of the Galahad, trying desperately to locate his missing teammates. With the direction Azurda was heading in and taking the current season into account, he should have reached Gormott with the other Origo Mercenaries. And yet when he returned to the base, he found it empty.

"This doesn't make any sense," he said to himself as he kept typing away on a keyboard. "A group of Drivers, Blades, a Titan _and_ the Aegis doesn't just disappear like that. Where are they?"

Suddenly the Galahad's sensors went off. It was detecting an unusual surge of magical energy. Come to think of, that also happened last night when the Origo Mercenaries were fleeing from Torna. A dark thought suddenly came to the researcher's mind.

He inserted Fenrir's core crystal back into the console and began typing furiously. Though not quite as powerful as the original Aegis cores, the silver core crystal still held a connection to _that_ artifact and systems that harnessed its power. By accessing a small part of the artifact's special energies, he might be able to trace the unusual energy surge and not only find out where his team had gone to, but for him to go there and bring them back. They couldn't have ended up in a really bad world, could they?

When the console finished its calculations and locked onto the world in which the Origo Mercenaries were in, Klaus's heart sank. Of all the countless worlds the team could have gotten sucked into, why did it have to be _that one_? A world that serves a fragment of a forgotten age that has since separated from the world it originally came from. A land that has gone undisturbed for thousands of years, safely containing a terrible darkness that a brave group of heroes sacrificed much to defeat.

Temporal Island.

Klaus had to work fast. Xander and the others don't know how much danger they're really in. If that darkness manages to break free from its prison, then there was no guarantee that they would survive. He can't let that happen. The Origo Mercenaries were too important for Alrest's future. He needed to get them out of there as soon as possible.

"Hold on, Xander," he said quickly. "I'm coming. I won't let you die there. I'll bring you all back home safely. I promise."

**To be continued**

* * *

**Well, ain't that a comforting way to end a chapter? I'd hate to know what it could be that scares Klaus so much about that place (spoiler, I already know). All joking aside, if you read the original Temporal Island, you're probably wondering why I didn't include ALL of the Alfheim Warriors and instead only included seven of them. While I do like challenging myself with how many characters I can add (just look at Black Wolf), I felt it would be best if I kept the cast a bit smaller than in the original arc. Mainly, most of the Alfheim Warriors aren't actually needed for this arc. Only Marth, Thorrnn, Kirito, Asuna, Yuuki and Sinon are needed given their future roles within Black Wolf (I threw Klein in there because I like him and he can bring some comedy relief). Anyway, I'll see you guys next time!**


	6. The Ruined Village

When the joined group had arrived, Xander didn't expect to see an empty village in complete decay. There was nothing there. No people, no animals. Just damaged buildings and plant life. Strangely, there wasn't as much overgrowth as would be expected from an abandoned town. It was almost like the village was frozen in time.

"No way," Nia said in horror.

"I can't believe it," Dromarch spoke up. "This whole village has been destroyed."

Xander noticed that Mythra was visibly trembling in fear, her breathing unsteady.

"No, not here too," the Aegis said quickly as she covered her hands with her mouth in horror. "Don't tell me I caused this too?"

Mythra was having yet another panic attack, but this time her core crystal was flashing erratically. She hasn't had one since they had arrived on this strange floating island (which Xander still couldn't wrap his head around and he lived in a world made of clouds). He may not know much about the Aegis's past except for the stories his mother told him when he was younger, but he could tell that the poor girl had gone through some hard times. He had to do something to calm her down.

Steeling himself, he grabbed Mythra and pulled her in close before wrapping his arms around her back, surprising everyone else. "It's alright," he said calmly as he rubbed the girl's back gently. "You didn't cause this. I promise. Everything's fine."

That seemed to work as Mythra began to calm down, her core crystal no longer flashing. After a few moments, the two separated although the Aegis looked rather flustered and refused to look her Driver in the face. "Er…Thank you, Xander," she said slowly, trying her hardest not to blush. "I'm sorry you had to see that again."

"There's no need to apologize," Xander replied. "We're a team. We support each other even in hard times."

"He's right," Nia agreed as she rested a hand on her waist. "Everyone in the Origo Mercenaries have their secrets, but we do our best to support each other regardless."

"Indeed," Dromarch added. "Well said, my lady."

"Still," Asuna spoke up as the group returned their focus to the ruined town. "What could have caused this? There's barely any buildings that are mostly intact."

"Could be the work of the monsters of this island," Jin guessed. "They certainly felt like they could destroy a small town like this."

Yuuki let out a sigh before taking the first few steps forward. "Well at least we can use this place as shelter," the Absolute Sword said hopefully. "And just in time too because night is practically here."

She was right as the last remnants of day were swiftly changing into the gentle embrace of the night. With no better options available, the group made their way into the village, all with sorrowful looks on their faces. There was a dozen or so buildings in the town, all in varying integrity. There were even some buildings that were just a pile of boards of charred wood.

There was a well in what must have been the town square as well as a gentle river located at the west end. Destruction was everywhere. Doors and windows smashed, holes bursting through the walls and stone roofs. To think that this place used to be full of people, full of life.

The only building that looked the most structurally sound was thankfully the inn, which was located a few houses away from the river. The inside was in complete disarray with a few broken tables and chairs, not to mention shattered dishes and bottles of glass. It was two stories, with the rooms on the second floor while the bar and dining area were on the first. There was also a doorway that led to a medium-sized pool of water that had wooden walls around it, likely a bathhouse of sorts.

It was hard to see at first because it was now night, but Thorrnn had the courtesy to create an orb of gentle flame in her palm, while Kirito also cast a night vision spell on everyone to help improve visibility.

"Well it's not perfect," Kirito spoke up as he looked around, "but at least we've got a roof over our heads. Let's see if we can salvage anything and maybe make some dinner. I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm starving."

"I think we all are," Marth voiced.

As expected, most of the food items stored in the kitchen had long since spoiled. It was a nightmare to get the cabinets and counters clean. Only some herbs and cooking utensils looked usable.

In order to be as efficient as possible, the group decided to split into three teams. Team A would go look for any wildlife that might be nearby, Team B would go to the river for water and fish, while Team 3 stayed to tidy up the inn (hey they may be staying there out of necessity but that didn't mean they shouldn't at least try to make it more livable). Team A consisted of Marth, Thorrnn, Sinon, Ethan and Poppi. Team B was led by Kirito and was joined by Klein, Jin, Nia and Dromarch. Everyone else made up Team C, though both Mythra and Yuuki were a little frustrated that they didn't get into Team A.

"Sorry, Yuuki, Mythra," Marth said sympathetically. "But we can't place all our heavy hitters in one team. We don't even know how safe this village is. We could be attacked at any moment."

"Plus the Blades shouldn't be separated from their Drivers," Ethan added. "They tend to get a lot weaker when they're separated by a long distance. Even Poppi isn't immune to that and she's an artificial Blade."

Poppi gave her Driver a pitiful look. "Sorry Ethan. I might be able to use my full power even without you if my ether furnace was fully ignited, but it refuses to cooperate with me."

"No worries," the Ardainian passed off. "I'm sure we'll find a solution eventually. Anyway, we should all get moving. It's not getting any brighter here."

Everyone agreed and set off to accomplish their respective tasks. Xander acted as the leader of Team C and began divvying up jobs for everyone. Asuna and Yuuki were charged with preparing the kitchen (apparently they were rather skilled at cooking). Kos-Mos was to inspect the bedrooms and see if any repairs needed to be made. Finally, Xander and Mythra were to handle cleaning up the dining room. Azurda, on the other hand, simply sat on the counter and watched. There wasn't much he could really do with such a small size.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," the Aegis complained as she was sweeping up the broken glass with a somewhat decent broom and dustpan. "I'm the Aegis, not a maid. Can't someone else do this?"

The silver-haired Driver chuckled in amusement. The mention of a maid reminded him of that maid costume Ethan got for Poppi. Apparently she actually has a mode to fit that role, though Xander has never seen it before. He has, however, seen some rather revealing costumes for the artificial Blade. The others, especially Nia (though neither Kos-Mos or Poppi made any comment on the matter), voiced their disapproval of them but Ethan has yet to dispose of them.

"Well it's either this or risk getting cut if we take so much as a step."

"I'm a Blade. I heal fast. Getting cut from glass isn't going to affect me."

"True," Xander voiced. "But that's not the case for us humans. We heal much slower than you guys. Honestly I'm kind of envious at that."

Mythra simply giggled at that. "I never thought I'd hear a Driver say something like that," she replied. "You sure are interesting, Xander."

Xander cracked a light smile. For some reason, he felt relaxed around the Aegis. It almost reminded him of whenever he was alone with Kos-Mos. It must be because they're both Light elemental Blades. He felt the temptation to open up to her a little more. It made sense. They are technically partners now.

"Origo."

Mythra looked at him in confusion and paused from what she was doing. "Pardon?" Azurda, on the other hand, hummed to himself as he watched the scene unfold.

"That's my last name. Origo. Figured you should know."

The girl's eyes widened in disbelief. She remembered Nia mentioning that name earlier, but she had passed it off as a coincidence, or maybe Jin had chosen the name. But no, her Driver shared that name as well. A name she never thought she would hear again. That meant that…

"Xander, are you…" she started to say.

"Master, I have found some usable towels we can use," Kos-Mos suddenly called out. "Shall I bring them down?"

The duo looked up and saw the pastel-blue-haired android standing by the railing overhead. In her hands was a pile of different towels that were in good condition.

"Yeah, go ahead," their Driver answered. "So how's the upstairs looking?"

"Quite a bit of dust has collected in each of the bedrooms, but I calculate that only some moderate dusting will be required," the android replied matter-of-factly. "I have even taken the liberty of choosing our room."

"Wait, you two share a room?" Mythra questioned before facing the half-Ardainian. "Just what kind of relationship do you have with her?"

Xander's face went beet red as he quickly raised his hands in defense. "N-nothing like that, I swear," he stammered out. "Believe me, I tried to get her to stop a long time ago."

"Uh huh," Mythra said slowly, not even trying to hide her suspicion. She then returned her gaze to her fellow Blade. "Hey, Kos-Mos, is there any space for me as well?"

"Why are you asking that?!" Xander cried out in shock.

Mythra let out a scoff as she folded her arms. "Well someone has to make sure you don't do anything indecent while you two are alone," she passed off. "I don't like it, but I might be the best fit because I'm your Blade as well."

For just a fraction of a second, Kos-Mos's left eyebrow seemed to twitch. "That…is not necessary," the android spoke up. "However I cannot deny that the room should be able to accommodate the three of us."

Xander suddenly wished that he had joined the other teams instead of remaining here. He'd rather be _anywhere else_ right now. Surely the Architect couldn't be so cruel as to inflict this fate upon him. This had to be a bad dream, right? Right?

"Uh, Uncle, a little help here," the half-Ardainian pleaded with the little Titan.

Unfortunately luck was not on his side as the Titan was simply rolling on his back, laughing all the while. "Sorry, Xander," Azurda said between fits. "But I'm enjoying this too much. You're on your own with this one."

"Oh, come on! Can this get any worse?!"

"What's going on here?" Asuna suddenly spoke up as she poked her head out of the kitchen, catching the others' attention. "You guys are making an awful lot of noise."

"N-nothing," Xander said with a slight yelp. "Just continue what you're doing."

The Undine raised an eyebrow in suspicion but thankfully chose not to press further. Instead she just went back into the kitchen to help Yuuki get things set up. Kos-Mos did manage to bring the towels down and place them by the entrance to the bathhouse before going back up to dust. There weren't enough towels for everyone so that meant that they'll have to be reused, but it was better than nothing.

After what felt like an eternity, only made worse by Mythra and Azurda now teasing him over sharing a room with two girls, the duo was finally able to get the dining area relatively clean. Some tables and chairs were unsalvageable, but they could make for some decent firewood. The bar was in good shape and there were still plenty of usable chairs left, so there was no fear of having to eat on the floor. They had even managed to find some lanterns that were intact. Curiously they didn't use ether or oil (some liquid that's from Earth) for fuel, but rather magical energy, or mana. Supposedly both Marth and Thorrnn had sensed that there was mana in the air during their trek to the village, though why they could sense that was unknown to the Aegis Driver. This did come in handy though as now the group can light up the inn more.

They finished just in time too as the other teams have finally returned from their tasks. Team A managed to find some rabbits and even more herbs, though Marth was curiously picking at his teeth for some reason. When Xander asked about it, the Dark Swordsman said that he got rabbit fur stuck between his teeth. That had to be some kind of joke because there's no way a swordsman would hunt a rabbit with his bare teeth.

Team B returned with buckets of water, enough for both drinking and cooking. They even managed to score some fish. Weirdly enough, Kirito was picking his teeth as well, something about him trying to get the fish scales out. Just what is with the Darkness Duo?

Asuna and Yuuki, joined by Jin and Thorrnn, immediately got to work preparing dinner. Curiously Marth was staying as far from the kitchen as possible, despite both Yuuki and Thorrnn urging him to join in.

"Unless you want to give everyone food poisoning, you don't want me anywhere near the food," he said rather hastily before bolting out the door.

"Surely he can't be _that_ bad at cooking, right?" Nia questioned obliviously.

Kirito gave the Gormotti a knowing look, smirking all the while. "Want to try it out?" he offered.

Nia was silent for a moment before sighing in exasperation. "On second thought, maybe not."

Everyone in the dining area laughed at that. Kirito ended up leaving to go make sure his best friend didn't go too far. Xander and the others simply gathered around the fireplace, which was newly lit thanks to Thorrnn's fire magic. They also took the opportunity to take baths while dinner was being prepared. Nia went first, although she was strangely adamant against letting any of the other girls joining her. Once she was done getting cleaned up (she had changed into some spare clothes that Kos-Mos had found for everyone so that their current attire could be washed), Mythra and Sinon went next, along with a hesitant Kos-Mos. The android gave the offer of going in with her Driver, much to Xander's chagrin. He practically pushed her towards the bathhouse to join the Aegis and Cait Sith archer just to save himself from further embarrassment.

Neither Blade needed to wash their clothes since they could simply regenerate them using their ether energy, which was kind of handy. Sinon and the other humans, though (not to mention Poppi) didn't have such luck. Eventually everyone except the Darkness Duo and the group in the kitchen had taken baths.

"Never thought a bath would feel so good," Mythra praised. "I feel alive again."

"I'm guessing you hadn't had a bath in over five hundred years?" Klein questioned.

"Yep. The pod I was in maintained my body enough that I didn't have to worry about baths, but there's only so much you can do to pass the time within a dream world."

"A dream world?" Poppi mused with interest. "What did you dream about, Mythra?"

Strangely enough, Mythra looked away, towards a window revealing the beautiful moon. "Nothing of importance."

That was a lie. Xander could tell in an instant. He wondered if he could get the Aegis to open up a bit more. She clearly cared about the others, especially him, but she was keeping them at arm's length. What could her reason for that be? Did have something to do with the Aegis War five hundred years ago? For now, though, Xander chose to leave it be.

By the time Marth and Kirito had returned, Asuna and the others had finished cooking and were starting to bring them out to the table. Not surprisingly, everything tasted incredible. Jin was already a good cook but tasting Asuna's food was spectacular. Xander could see why Kirito fell for her. Needless to say, none of the food that was prepared went to waste.

"Ah," Kirito said in bliss as he leaned back in his chair. "I never get tired of your food, Asuna."

"Your food's great as well, Yuuki," Marth added with a content smile. "You did good too, Thorrnn."

"Indeed," Azurda agreed as he munched on some fish. "I haven't eaten this well in years."

The Absolute Sword smiled in victory. "Thanks, Marth. You too, Azurda. I'm glad you both like it."

"Me as well, Brother," the Sylph added. "Even though all I did was provide the heat."

"Nonsense, Thorrnn," Asuna refuted calmly. "You were a big help back there. You've got such a steady hand with a knife. It's no wonder you're good with a sword."

The greenette couldn't help but smile in response. "Thanks, Asuna. Our foster parents are always busy with work, so they're not always around," she explained. "Because of that, I tended to do most of the cooking, even when Marth still kept his distance from me because of our past."

Marth let out a heavy breath. "I can't apologize enough for that," he said solemnly. "We lost our birth parents during our vacation in Tokyo and in my own pain, I pushed you away, even though you were hurting as well. I'm really sorry, Sister."

The Sylph suddenly reached out and took her brother's hand into her own, surprising him. "Don't worry about it, Marth," Thorrnn reassured. "All that matters is that you came back to your senses once you got out of SAO. Now we always look after each other."

The Dark Swordsman smiled in relief. "Yeah. We do."

It was touching to see the two siblings get close like that. It reminded Xander of his own family, the younger sister and cousin he had left behind. Deep down, he knew that they were fine, they had their own Blades after all. However, every now and then Xander would feel a sense of longing, of wishing to return to his home. But there was a reason for his self-exile, and because of that, he can never return to his home in Mor Ardain.

Both Mythra and Kos-Mos noticed the longing look in their Driver's eyes. The small Titan noticed as well but only he and Kos-Mos understood why the half-Leftherian was acting as such. Neither of the trio questioned the Driver, feeling that it was best to leave him be for now.

"Anyway," Sinon suddenly spoke up. "What are we going to do? We can't exactly stay here for the rest of our lives."

"Too true," Jin agreed. "While this village might be peaceful for now, this whole island is way too dangerous to stay in for long term."

"Yeah," Xander added. "We need to find a way to contact Klaus. I'm sure he might know a way for all of us to get back to our worlds."

Kos-Mos nodded her head in agreement. "I concur, Master. That would be the wisest choice for us to make. I calculate that there is a 90% chance that Klaus is looking for us as we speak."

That would not be much of a surprise. Klaus was a member of the Origo Mercenaries after all. While there was still much that Xander didn't know about their advisor, like which nation he came from, he still trusted the man with his life. After all, it was thanks to Klaus that he was still alive. While Kos-Mos was a force to be reckoned with, Xander was always her weakest link. If he died, then she would revert back into a core crystal, allowing someone else to resonate with her but with the memories of her previous life erased. Azurda wished that he could have stayed more frequently during that time, or even permanently to help protect the inexperienced Driver, however he wanted to keep Xander's existence as hidden as possible, so he largely kept his distance.

That decision, however, would be a big mistake as there came a time where Xander and Kos-Mos were trapped between a rock wall and a massive gogal while traveling around Gormott doing mercenary work. The android did everything she could to protect her Driver from harm, using every Art at her disposal, but the gogal was quick to catch on. The colossal ape-like creature managed to catch her off-guard with a sudden kick, slamming her into the hard rock. While Kos-Mos was stunned for a brief period, she watched in horror as the gogal prepared to crush the isolated Xander under its massive fist.

But then, as if the Architect himself had willed it, _he_ appeared. Klaus suddenly came swinging in on a grapple, grabbed the young Driver, and got him out of harm's way. Relieved that her Driver was safe, the two humans then watched as the enraged Kos-Mos mercilessly annihilated the gogal with a full-powered X Buster. When the Art concluded, nothing remained of the gogal and the ground beneath it had a large streak with no grass growing, almost like a scar.

Ever since that day, Xander has stuck by Klaus, the man acting as a second father to him as well as a mentor. It was thanks to him that the Leftherian became such a good Driver. Because of that, he felt that he could never fully repay the blonde-haired man for everything that he has done.

 _"Where are you, Klaus?"_ he wondered to himself. _"I really need your help right now. Please hurry."_

* * *

Marth was relatively silent as he watched the discussion unfold. For some strange reason, he's been feeling a strange sense of familiarity ever since he got out of that swamp. The gentle warm air, this ruined village and that strange city he saw from the sky. It filled him with a foreign sense of nostalgia, but also sadness.

But it didn't make sense. He had never been to this floating island before. Why did he feel that he knew this place? The answer felt like it was on the tip of his tongue, but it stayed firmly out of his reach.

_Do not worry. You will find your answers, some not in the immediate future, but others quite soon._

Marth let out a gasp in surprise as he hastily scanned the room. "Who said that?!" he called out.

That voice sounded feminine, strong and mysterious, firm yet kind. It didn't sound like it had come from a person talking, instead it was like it was speaking directly within the Spriggan's mind. That seemed to be the case as everyone else looked confused by his sudden declaration.

"Is something wrong?" Yuuki asked in concern.

"Are we under attack?" Dromarch added.

Kirito was the one to speak up to answer. "No, that can't be," he replied. "My Hypersense would have detected any enemy presences the moment they would have tried to strike."

Jin nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah. I don't sense anything either."

So they really didn't hear that strange voice. Marth sincerely hoped it wasn't a sign of him going crazy. He waited to see if the voice would respond to him, only to get silence in return. Maybe he had simply just imagined it. However, he still planned to tell Kirito about it in private.

Since it was getting late and everyone was exhausted from all the fighting and traveling, they all decided that they would continue this in the morning. Klein, Yuuki and most of the Origo Mercenaris headed upstairs to their assigned rooms. Strangely enough, Xander looked strangely uncomfortable as he, Mythra, Azurda and Kos-Mos walked up the stairs. Marth simply shrugged it off though. The Leftherian Driver must just be uneasy sleeping in such a desolate town.

Sinon and Kirito stayed on the first floor, with the former performing a sort of check-up on her bow. Meanwhile Asuna and Thorrnn headed for the outdoor bath for their turn to freshen up, with Jin staying close behind so that he could bathe next. Marth found the masked swordsman quite intriguing. The white-haired man clearly cared about his comrades, but his body language was somewhat rigid, almost like he was keeping them at arm's length. Then there was Jin's presence. It felt different compared to the other Drivers, it was almost…not human.

Unfortunately Jin noticed his staring and said, "Something wrong?"

"No," Marth passed off. "I'm just trying to get a read on you. You seem different compared to your friends."

Jin's blue eyes narrowed from behind his mask. "I could say the same thing about you," he answered as he folded his arms, almost like a shield. "Both you and your sister feel different from the others. It almost feels like a sort of…darkness…is inside of you two. Yours especially feels quite strong."

The Dark Swordsman reeled back in surprise. He never expected that the masked swordsman would be able to sense that. The only person who could was his birth mother, Serena Storm, who was an untrained psychic. She once also claimed that there was a darkness with himself and his sister, though she couldn't determine whether it was good or evil.

Just thinking about his deceased mother made Marth's heart ache. While she and his father were somewhat wary of the two children, they still showed them love and affection. However that affection would cost them dearly on that fateful night on Christmas Eve during their family vacation to Japan. Those shadowy assailants that ambushed them in one of Tokyo's parks were after Marth, not the rest of his family. Both his parents stayed behind to distract the mysterious assassins so that he and Thorrnn could escape, but the assassins soon caught up after killing them. If it wasn't for that strange swordswoman in black armor who suddenly appeared, he would be dead, leaving Thorrnn all alone.

He never even managed to get his rescuer's name, much less say his thanks. She just simply disappeared as soon as the assassins were dealt with. To this day the murder of his parents has gone unsolved, the police abandoning the case after a few months with no leads. Since the two siblings had no extended family and were not Japanese citizens, the government was planning to deport them where they would then be taken to an orphanage somewhere in America, their home country. However by some divine miracle, Marth and Thorrnn were instead sent to an orphanage in Tokyo where they were later adopted by a kind Japanese couple.

Even now, the Dark Swordsman had no clue what changed the government's mind, but he sure wasn't complaining. He didn't really have any friends back in his old home plus staying in Japan allowed him to meet Kirito, who was probably one of the few people he trusted completely. Despite their real-life appearances not looking alike, the Dual Blades practitioners treated each other like brothers. Marth sincerely felt grateful that he was able to meet Kirito, else he may have taken a far darker path.

"I don't know much about you, Marth," Jin continued with his analysis. "But you do seem like a kind person. However, if you become a threat to my friends, I will not hesitate to cut you down."

Marth felt the urge to retort at the threat, but soon found himself hesitating. He couldn't really offer any kind of defense to that. Not after what happened in that underground dungeon back in the original Aincrad. That horrible memory that will forever haunt him.

"Brother. Jin. What are you talking about?"

The two swordsmen perked up as they saw Thorrnn and Asuna return from the bath. Their hair was still a little damp, but they looked rather good in the rustic attire. It gave them a rather unique charm. Of course, any guy that so much as looked at his younger sister funny would get a swift punch in the gut. Marth would never allow anyone he deemed unworthy to ever take his sister out on a date. Sinon actually had made the remark saying that Thorrnn would die alone because the Dark Swordsman kept scaring away all the boys.

Speaking of Thorrnn, she always seemed to have a soothing presence that always put him at ease. Had he not pushed her away out of grief over their parents' deaths, he might have been able to find some peace for it. Who was he kidding, he still hasn't found any peace for that night. Despite this, being around his beloved sister made that burden somewhat easier. She was always willing to offer a shoulder and be his support, like any good sibling would be.

"It's nothing," Marth said finally before tossing a glance towards the masked mercenary. "Right Jin?"

"Yeah," the older man replied with a slight nod. "Just discussing something private. There's no need for you two to be concerned with it."

Both girls looked rather skeptical, especially the Sylph, but they chose not to question it and marched upstairs to go to bed, dumping their somewhat dirty clothes in a basket to be washed tomorrow. Jin then grabbed a towel and his change of clothes before heading for the bath himself, leaving Marth alone, though before he departed, the two shared one final look with each other.

After a moment of silence, Marth turned to Kirito and tugged at his collar with his right hand. The Black Swordsman noticed the gesture instantly and nodded. It was a signal that they created to notify the other that they wanted to speak in private. The fellow Spriggan said good night to Sinon before following Marth out the door into the village plaza, coming to a stop by the well.

It was a clear night, the stars and moon easily within view. The air was a little chilly but wasn't enough to cause discomfort to the duo. They had faced far colder climates within both SAO and ALO.

"What's wrong?" Kirito questioned intently, cutting straight to the chase. "What seems to be bothering you?"

Marth didn't even know where to begin. There was so much he wanted to say, but also things that he didn't fully comprehend. "Well, for some reason I feel like I've been here before," he explained slowly. "This air, this view, this destruction. It all feels so familiar to me and I have no idea why."

Surprisingly, the Black Swordsman suddenly sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. And here I thought I was the only one who felt that way."

"Wait what?!" Marth said in disbelief as he unconsciously took a step backward. "You feel it too?"

"Yep," Kirito said with a pop as he crossed his arms. "I don't know why, but seeing this destruction feels familiar, like I've seen something like this before. I'm not talking like in a video game, but in real life."

That's exactly how he felt. The Darkness Duo have seen some rather dark scenes from both anime and video games, but this sadness and familiarity went far beyond that. It was almost like they had witnessed the events that destroyed this town, or at least something similar in another location. None of this made any sense.

Then there was that mysterious city to the far north of their current location. For some reason, Marth felt the strange sadness grow stronger there. Could the answers he sought be hiding there? He relayed this all to Kirito, who held his chin as he mulled over the details.

"It is possible that we could find some answers there," the Black Swordsman acknowledged. "But it's pretty far from here and this is a dangerous land. It might be too risky."

"I know that," Marth said firmly. "But still, I can't shake this feeling that I have to go there. I'll go alone if I have to."

And he meant that. If there was one thing Marth never wanted to do, it was putting people in unnecessary danger for his sake. If the others felt it was too dangerous to venture that far, then Marth will simply fly there with his wings. He was among one of the fastest fliers in Alfheim Online, largely thanks to his mastery over wind magic. At his top speed, he could probably make it to that city in about two hours, spend roughly a day investigating then head back. However, this was Kirito he was talking to. There was no way in hell that he'd let his partner take such risks alone.

"Are you crazy, Marth?!" Kirito scolded as he grabbed his friend by the arm. "Do you seriously think that I wouldn't go with you just because it's dangerous? We've been in tons of risky situations before back in SAO, but we always pushed through. What makes you think this would be any different?"

"Don't forget me!"

Both boys were taken aback when Thorrnn suddenly stormed over and slapped her brother hard on the cheek. How did she even know they were even out here? She should be in bed resting right now.

As if reading his mind, Thorrnn answered with, "I saw you and Kirito walk out of the inn when I was heading down to get some water. I got worried because it was so late so I went after you two." She then narrowed her eyes in frustration, causing the blue-eyed Spriggan to involuntarily flinch. "I can't believe you, Brother. Why do you keep trying to shoulder things by yourself? Don't you know that I can support you? Then there's Klein, Yuuki, Asuna and Sinon. We can all help you."

Marth looked away out of guilt, unwilling to meet his sister's fierce gaze. "It's just…this isn't a game," he said softly. "I already lost Mom and Dad. I can't lose you too, Thorrnn. I don't think I could take it."

Now Thorrnn was in for a shock as she took a step backward, her anger quickly dissipating. Her eyes then filled with sorrow. "Oh, so that's why," she said in understanding. "But that's why I have to come with you. I couldn't live with myself if I stayed in a safe location and you died somewhere far off when I could've been there to help. Do you know how stressful it was when you were trapped in SAO? Every day I woke up fearing that I would get a call that the NerveGear had destroyed your brain and killed you. There were even times where I was tempted to find a NerveGear of my own and go after you. Xander told me that I had to be willing to do everything it takes to keep you and the others safe. Well I'm fulfilling that now. You're _not_ going to that city alone. If you even try, then I'll just fly after you, because I'm your little sister!"

Marth was rendered speechless by all that Thorrnn had said to him. He knew that it hadn't been easy for the girl during the SAO Incident as she didn't know if he would have escaped or not, but he never knew that she had even been tempted to go after him. Words just seemed to fail him as he knew nothing, he said would convince her otherwise.

On the other hand, Kirito let out a nervous chuckle, thanking his lucky stars that his sister, Leafa, wasn't here. She'd probably tell him off too if she had overheard their conversation. "Well it looks like we've got no other choice," he said simply. "We'll have to discuss it with the others in the morning. If worse comes to worse, we can always count on Asuna and the others to help us."

Marth was forced to agree with that while Thorrnn was satisfied with the suggestion. She told the duo good night before heading back to the inn. Once she was out of sight, the Dark Swordsman let out an exasperated sigh.

"I swear I've got the most stubborn little sister," he said slowly, causing Kirito to chuckle.

"Oh please, I think she's tied with Leafa for that role. Anyway, was there anything else you wanted to tell me?"

Oh yeah, there was. Because of Thorrnn's sudden appearance, he had nearly forgotten something. Something important. "Yeah, I think Jin knows my secret, or at the very least knows that something lurks within me."

Kirito's eyes widened in shock. He knew exactly what his best friend was referring to, and it was something that terrified both of them. It was honestly a miracle that they had only suffered one incident involving it. "No way," he said in horror. "But how can that be?"

Marth didn't answer at first, silently placing his right hand on his heart, feeling the organ beat in his chest. "I don't know," he answered finally. "But he definitely made it clear that if I became a threat to his friends, he would take me out. The scary part is, I think he might be able to do it."

The Black Swordsman didn't know what to say. He was barely able to survive that terrible incident in that dungeon with his best equipment and using his Dual Blades skill. While his ALO stats seemed to have been carried over into this world, they weren't quite as high as his SAO avatar. Although that made sense since Alfheim Online wasn't a death game and Kirito had real life issues, mainly school, to deal with so there was never a need to grind for experience. Despite this slight handicap, he refused to let that stop him.

"Don't worry, Marth," Kirito reassured as he placed a hand on his friend's shoulder while cracking a warm smile. "I was able to help you then, and I'll help you now. I'll make sure that strange power doesn't come back."

Marth couldn't help but smile back from the gesture. "Thanks, Kirito. I can always count on you. You really are my best partner."

"Yup, and don't you forget it. We're in this together!"

The Darkness Duo shared a laugh before deciding to return to the inn to get some sleep. They needed their strength for the journey that awaited them tomorrow. However, as they walked back, they soon had a feeling that they were being watched, but despite their Spriggan night vision spell, they couldn't find anyone in the area. Kirito shared this information with Jin, who had volunteered to take the first watch in case monsters decided to attack, who assured them that he'll be vigilant for any potential threats.

Unbeknownst to the swordsmen, a strange shadowy bat was watching them from a nearby rooftop, its eyes trained on the Darkness Duo.

* * *

A man garbed in terrifying black armor with crimson-red accents and a red cape flowing down his back knelt before a strange altar, which contained a large gemstone as black as night, located on an enormous tower located the northernmost city on Temporal Island. His shoulder-length hair was a deep gray and his eyes a cold black. Strapped to his back was a large red greatsword with a wicked edge.

He smiled as he saw the two teens through the eyes of his familiar. Good. Everything was proceeding as planned. It wouldn't be much longer now. A swirling purple void suddenly emerged within the gemstone, the strange rock now trembling with moderate force. It was if it was feeling anticipation for what it to come. A black and gold magic circle suddenly materialized around the altar, releasing an aura of power upon the gemstone. An ancient masculine voice cried out in pain as it struggled to break free from its bonds.

"Be patient, Master," the armored man advised calmly. "We will soon have everything we need to free you from this prison. Then you can finally escape this place and finish what you started thousands of years ago."

That seemed to settle the being trapped in the gemstone as the void within it faded and the shaking stopped. The magic circle's light faded as well. It was very impressive that such a little thing was potent enough to confine the soul of a god. Then again, this prison was created by two goddesses, primal ones at that. However, that wouldn't stop his dear master from spending several millennia trying to break free. His rage and fury could not be contained.

Suddenly the man felt something warm within his pocket. He rose to his feet and pulled out the source, a small green stone that was barely a fifth the size of his palm. He could feel the resentment and anger radiating off of the stone. Even after all these years, she still refused to concede to him. She was still determined to escape.

"Don't you worry," the man said cynically. "I'll let you watch as I sacrifice the half-breed and his little friends to free my master from his confinement. I bet you won't be as strong-willed once you see Zane's reincarnation die by my hand. This is your ultimate punishment for defying the God of Destruction, Zeta!"

Meanwhile the woman whose spirit was trapped within the green stone struggled valiantly to free herself. Even without a body, she could still try something, like maybe warn Zane not to come here. However, her captor had taken extra measures to ensure this prison was strong enough to confine a demon as powerful as her.

 _"Please, Lady Sinestra,"_ she silently pleaded as she was returned to the man's pocket. _"Watch over Zane and his friends. Offer them your protection and stop this traitor's mad ambitions."_

* * *

From her isolated palace located deep within the shadowy lands of Eternus, the land that she had created for her beloved children but has long since distanced herself from them out of shame, a beautiful woman with fair skin and long shadowy black hair perked up from her throne. She wore a fancy long-sleeved black and purple dress that showed off her thin figure and accented her modest bust. She wore purple heeled shoes, a beautiful necklace made of platinum and decorated with multiple red and purple gems. Resting upon her head and woven into her long hair was an ornate black and purple tiara that radiated divine power.

She had felt a strange presence, four of them in fact, ones that she hasn't felt in ages, not since the end of the War of Light and Shadow. One of them was heavily masked, making it near impossible for even her to properly identify, but she could clearly sense the other three. She nearly teared up when she felt the younger two. So the Twilight Dragon was right after all. The children have returned at last.

However, the realm which they were in was one where they should not be. It was a realm created by the remaining gods after that brutal final battle of the War of Light and Shadow, using the fallen kingdom of Arcadia to forever imprison their fallen brother.

"So then, False Demon King Zarc, Dark God Zeta," she mused to herself, filling every word she uttered with venom and disgust. "You would seriously believe that you could lure two members of the family I created from my own blood, the family I see as my direct kin, into the Temporal Realm and not catch my notice. You both truly are fools."

She wanted to go to Temporal Island immediately, but gods were forbidden from going. Even a goddess as powerful as her couldn't disobey the will of Aesir, the God of Creation. However, that didn't mean she was entirely helpless. The Goddess of Shadows, Sinestra, was known to always keep a few tricks up her sleeve.

Also, as much as Sinestra hated to admit it, she knew that she would need help from her sister. It is only through their combined might that they could pierce through the veil surrounding the Temporal Realm and send the help that the children desperately needed.

She could only pray that Celestia would at least be somewhat cooperative.

**To be continued**

* * *

**Wow, a bit longer than I anticipated. I was unsure whether to include the green stone Zarc was carrying and the scene with Sinestra (in case you haven't read Black Wolf, she's a fictional goddess that I created and the progenitor of the demon race) but I decided to put them in partially for foreshadowing for Black Wolf (which actually takes place long after this story in Marth's world) and to show off Sinestra, who has yet to make an official appearance in any of my stories other than a telepathic voice in Fate Dark Night. Also regarding the incident that Marth and Kirito are referring to, don't bother reading either Dark Swordsman story to find out what happened. This idea is currently only referenced in Accel World: The Black Wolf as that's when I got the idea. Obviously since I promised to provide context for you guys regarding the SAO cast so that you wouldn't have to do additional reading, the details regarding this incident will be explained later on. I hope you guys can be patient with me. Anyway, I'll see you guys next time!**


End file.
